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A  COMPILATION 

OP  TUTS, 

HISTORICAL  AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  WRITINGS 

OF 

William  B.  Carlock 

ALSO 

Of  the  Ceremonies  attending  the  Dedication  of  the  Lincoln 

Trail  Monument,  on  the  Line  between  McLean 

and  Woodford  Counties. 


1923 


TO 

MISSOURI  McCART  CARLOCK 

My  ever  faithful  wife  and  confi- 
dant, who  has  courageously  stood  by 
mc  in  adversity  and  in  success,  and  in 
the  full  appreciation  of  her  good  deeds 
and  ivork  in  life,  I  lovingly  dedicate 
this  book. 

WILLIAM  BRYAN  CARLOCK 


WILLIAM  B.  CARLOCK 


o. 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 

Biographical  Sketch  of  William  B.  Carlock 5 

Masonic  Record  of  William  B.  Carlock 8 

Short  Biography  of  T.  W.  Stevenson I'd 

Biographical  Sketch  of  Abraham  W.  Carlock 14 

Biographical  Sketch  of  General  Robert  E.  Lee 24 

Principal  Battles  of  the  War  1812 4:5 

The  Rise,  Progress  and  Culmination  of    the    Abolition 

Party  in  the  U.  S. 51 

Biography  of  Shabbona,  Chief  of  the  Potawotamies 74 

The  Story  of  an  Indian 84 

Does  God  Aid  Combatants  in  War? 91 

Peace   or   War 95 

Some     Re  flections , 98 

Dedication  of  Lincoln  Trail  Monument 101 


PREFACE. 

Some  members  and  friends  of  the  McLean  County 
Historical  Society  have  requested  me  to  collate  in  book 
form,  the  essays  and  miscellaneous  papers  written  by  me 
and  read  at  the  meetings  of  said  Society.  Feeling  assured 
that  the  historic  matters  contained  in  them  may  be  of  in- 
terest to  the  people  of  McLean  County  and  the  State,  I 
have  complied  with  the  request  by  publishing  the  more 
important  ones  in  this  little  volume,  and  present  the  same 
to  the  Society  and  its  friends. 

William  Bryan  Carlock 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH   OF  WILLIAM   BRYAN 

CARLOCK 

By  His  Son — Bryan  Carlock. 

Ctrr  ILLIAM  BRYAN  CARLOCK  was  born  on  March 
*****  K>,  1842,  in  Woodford  County,  Illinois,  in  a  log 
cabin  which  stood  about  one  hundred  yards  over 
the  McLean  County  line.  He  was  the  son  of  Abraham 
W.  and  Mary  Goodpasture  Carlock,  and  was  the  eighth  of 
the  twelve  children  born  to  them. 

Abraham  W.  Carlock  was  born  in  West  Virginia, 
but  went  to  Tennessee  with  his  parents  when  a  child,  and 
there  grew  to  manhood.  There  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Alary  Goodpasture  and  emigrated  with  his  wife  and  two 
small  children  to  Illinois  in  1827,  making  the  trip  in  a 
covered  wagon  by  ox  team,  having  before  made  a  trip  to 
Illinois  on  horseback.  William  Bryan  Carlock  passed  his 
childhood  and  youth  on  the  farm  and  received  a  good  edu- 
cation in  the  country  schools  and  was  reared  to  the  habits 
of  industry  and  economy.  He  taught  school  and  at  the 
age  of  twenty-three  entered  Lombard  University  at  Gales- 
burg,  Illinois,  where  he  pursued  a  thorough  literary  and 
scientific  course  and  graduated  with  the  highest  honors  of 
his  class  in  the  summer  of  18(57.  In  the  meantime  he 
also  taught  a  select  school  for  several  terms,  to  assist  in 
defraying  his  expenses  in  college.  He  then  entered  the 
Law  Department  of  the  University  of  Michigan  at  Ann 
Arbor,  and  was  graduated  therefrom  in  the  Spring  of 
1869.  After  a  short  vacation  he  entered  the  law  office 
of  Williams  and  Burr  of  Rlonmin^ton,  and  was  admitted 


to  the  bar  in  December,  18G9.  He  soon  afterward  opened 
an  office  of  his  own  and  began  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, to  which  he  has  since  devoted  his  time.  He  had 
a  large  German  clientage,  having  acquired  this  language 
while  a  student  at  Lombard.  Mr.  Carlock  is  also  the 
patentee  of  a  wire  device  for  improving  the  acoustics  of 
public  halls,  churches,  etc.,  which  netted  him  handsome 
returns. 

On  October  G,  1870,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Missouri  McCart  of  this  city,  daughter  of  Robert 
McCart,  Sr.,  a  prominent  contractor  and  builder  of  that 
day,  and  a  sister  of  Col.  Robert  McCart,  at  that  time  a 
member  of  the  well  known  firm  of  Hughes  and  McCart, 
Lawyers,  but  for  many  years  now  a  resident  of  Fort 
Worth,  Texas.  They  have  three  children :  Bryan  Car- 
lock  and  Mrs.  Madeline  Linton,  of  Bloomington  and  W. 
C.  Carlock,  of  Chicago.  In  politics  Mr.  Carlock  is  a 
staunch  democrat,  but  frequently  in  local  politics  votes 
for  the  man  who  is  Jbest  fitted  for  the  office,  and  he  has 
always  been  in  favor  of  accepting  the  good  principles  in- 
culcated in  any  party.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Unitarian 
Church  and  his  wife  of  the  Christian  Church.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Phi  Delta  Theta,  a  Greek  Letter  Frater- 
nity College  Society. 

As  a  lawyer  he  has  been  eminently  successful  and  re- 
garded as  careful  and  painstaking,  and  has  acquired  an 
enviable  reputation  among  his  fellow  members  of  his 
profession  for  his  legal  acumen.  His  most  lucrative  prac- 
tice perhaps  was  confined  to  Chancery  and  Probate,  and 
which  he  liked  best,  although  he  has  devoted  much  time  to 
Common  Law  and  important  Criminal  cases.  He  is  good 
as  a  pleader,  and  careful  and  painstaking  in  preparing  and 


arranging  the  evidence  in  a  case  and  presenting  the  same 
to  a  Court  or  a  Jury. 

He  also,  as  Treasurer  of  the  McLean  County  His- 
torical Society,  wrote  short  biographical  sketches  of  each 
of  the  Presidents  of  the  United  States,  including  the  pres- 
ent incumbent,  Warren  G.  Harding,  giving  their  political 
complexion  and  official  acts  of  each,  and  measures  adopted 
under  each  administration,  which  record  was  deposited  in 
the  corner  stone  of  the  McBarnes  Memorial  Building  of 
Bloomington,  May  27,  1922. 

He  has  long  been  a  member  of  the  McLean  County 
Historical  Society,  and  has  taken  a  keen  interest  in  the  wel- 
fare of  the  same  and  done  much  hard  and  incessant  work 
in  building  up  and  placing  it  on  its  present  splendid  foot- 
ing. He  is  now  its  Treasurer.  He  is  also  a  member  of 
the  State  Historical  Society.  He  is  a  charter  member  and 
now  president  of  the  Old  Peoples'  Picnic  Association  of 
McLean  County. 

He  has  also  delivered  many  addresses  before  Masonic 
bodies  and  made  political  speeches,  which  have  been  pre- 
served. In  addition  to  the  biographical  sketches  appearing  in 
this  book,  he  has  written  biographical  sketches  of  the  follow- 
ing persons,  which  are  now  preserved  in  the  archives  of 
the  McLean  County  Historical  Society,  namely :  Major  W. 
Packard,  Thos.  F.  Tipton.  Judge  O.  T.  Reeves,  Judge  Al- 
fred Sample,  James  S.  Neville.  Aaron  G.  Karr,  Capt.  J. 
H.  Rowell,  John  F.  Myers,  Rev.  E.  J.  Thomas,  Dr.  Silas 
Hubbard  and  Winton  Carlock. 

He  celebrated  his  eighty-first  birthday  anniversary  on 
March  15th  last  and  is  still  hak  and  hearty. 

He  is  much  devoted  to  his  home  and  family ;  is  a  kind 
and  loving  husband  and  indulgent  father. 


MASONIC  RECORD  OF  WILLIAM  BRYAN 

CARLOCK 

By  T.  W.  Stevenson 

tT  is  with  pleasure  I  write  the  Masonic  record  of  my 
J     friend  and  neighbor,  Brother  William  Bryan  Carlock. 

He  is  one  of  the  prominent  Masons  of  Illinois  and  one 
in  whose  life  has  been  exemplified  the  teachings  of  this 
ancient  and  honored  order.  A  fit  subject  for  biographical 
honors,  his  Masonic  history  is  turned  to  by  the  writer  with 
no  small  degree  of  satisfaction. 

I  have  been  intimately  acquainted  with  him  for  about 
forty-five  years.  He  was  near  the  half  century  mile  post  be- 
fore the  thought  occurred  to  him  to  become  a  Mason.  Feel- 
ing that  the  principles  of  Masonry  might  be  of  great  bene- 
fit to  him  in  an  educational  way,  he  early  in  the  year  of 
1S88,  sought  the  influence  of  Masonry  by  petitioning  Mo- 
zart Lodge  No.  656,  Ancient  Free  and  Accepted  Masons, 
for  the  degrees  therein  conferred;  received  the  first  two 
degrees  in  the  Lodge,  and  was  raised  to  the  sublime  degree 
of  Master  Mason  on  September  18,  1888.  At  this  time 
Mozart  Lodge  was  a  German  speaking  and  working  Lodge 
under  a  ritual  which  corresponded  in  translation  to  the 
standard  English  ritual,  which  had  been  adopted  by  the  Ma- 
sons of  the  State  of  Illinois.  Some  three  years  ago  this 
Lodge  by  request  of  the  Grand  Master  of  the  State  and'by 
unanimous  vote  of  the  Lodge,  discarded  the  German  ritual 
and  work  and  adopted  the  standard  English  ritual. 

Mr.  Carlock  made  rapid  advances  in  the  higher  de" 
grees  of  the  Order,  and  soon  after  received  the  degrees 


in  Bloomington  Chapter  No.  2G,  Royal  Arch  Masons  and 
Bloomington  Council  No.  43,  Royal  and  Select  Masters 
and  DeMolay  Commandery  No.  24,  Knights  Templar, 
thus  completing  all  the  degrees  in  the  York  Rite.  During 
this  period  of  his  advancement  in  Masonry  he  petitioned 
and  became  a  member  of  Bloomington  Chapter  No.  50,  Or- 
der of  Eastern  Star,  and  also  received  the  Scottish  Rite  de- 
grees in  Peoria  Consistory,  and  within  a  short  time  there- 
after he  was  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  Mohammed 
Temple,  Ancient  Arabic  Order  of  Nobles  of  the  Mystic 
Shrine  of  Peoria,  Illinois.  He  also  became  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  Veteran's  Association  of  Chicago. 

Soon  after  becoming  a  Master  Mason,  he  was  elected 
Worshipful  Master  of  his  Lodge,  which  he  held  for  two 
years,  and  during  his  official  term  as  Master,  conferred  all 
the  degrees  of  the  same  in  the  German  language,  and  as- 
sisted in  conferring  the  degrees  in  the  English  language 
after  its  adoption  of  the  English  ritual.  He  was  also 
elected  High  Priest  of  said  Bloomington  Chapter,  which 
office  he  held  for  two  years  and  presided  over  all  of  the 
convocations  of  the  Chapter,  conferring  all  of  the  degrees 
in  the  same.  He  was  also  elected  Eminent  Commander 
of  DeMolay  Commandery  No.  24,  and  presided  over  the 
conclaves  of  the  same,  and  conferred  all  of  the  degrees 
therein. 

He  was  also  elected  and  held  the  office  for  two  years 
of  Worthy  Patron  in  said  Bloomington  Chapter,  Order  of 
Eastern  Star,  during  which  time  he  took  part  in  conferring 
all  of  the  degrees,  assisted  by  the  Worthy  Matron  of  said 
Chapter. 

He  was  elected  Thrice  Illustrious  Master  of  said 
Bloomington  Council  and  held  the  office  for  six  years  and 


conferred  all  of  the  degrees  in  the  same  under  the  standard 
ritual  of  that  Order.  He  served  two  years  as  Deputy 
Grand  Lecturer. 

He  was  elected  Grand  High  Priest  of  the  Grand  Royal 
Arch  Chapter  of  Illinois  in  October,  1912,  and  served  as 
such  for  one  year.  He  was  also  elected  Grand  Master 
of  the  Grand  Council  of  Royal  and  Select  Masters  of  the 
State  of  Illinois  and  served  in  same  for  one  year. 

Mr.  Carlock  has  also  served  on  several  important 
Committees  in  the  Grand  Bodies  of  the  York  Rite,  and  is 
at  present  a  member  of  the  Jurisprudence  Committee,  both 
in  Grand  Chapter  and  Grand  Council.  Mr.  Carlock  was 
also  elected  Grand  Patron  of  the  Grand  Chapter,  Order 
of  Eastern  Star,  which  office  he  held  for  two  years.  One 
year  of  which  being  the  unexpired  term  of  his  predecessor 
who  had  died.  During  this  term  of  office  he  was  instru- 
mental in  getting  the  location  of  the  Masonic  and  Eastern 
Star  Home  at  Macon,  Illinois,  and  served  for  several  years 
as  one  of  the  Trustees  of  this  Institution.  He  also  did  ef- 
ficient work  in  said  Chapter,  framing  its  Constitution  and 
By  Laws. 

Mr.  Carlock  received  the  degree  of  the  Order  of  High 
Priesthood  in  the  Grand  Council  of  Illinois,  in  Chicago, 
October  24,  1895,  and  was  one  of  the  Officers  of  that 
organization.  He  has  also  served  as  Grand  Lecturer  in 
both  the  Grand  Chapter  and  Grand  Council.  And  also  in 
his  capacity  as  Grand  High  Priest  and  Grand  Master  of 
the  above  named  bodies,  he  made  several  addresses  before 
the  Grand  and  Sub-ordinate  bodies  of  this  State,  including 
an  address  made  before  the  Grand  Chapter  of  Royal 
Arch  Masons  of  Missouri  at  Kansas  City  in  April,  1913. 
He  was  a  delegate  to  the  General  Grand  Chapter,  Royal 

10 


Arch  Masons  of  the  United  States  at  Savannah,  Georgia, 
in  1909. 

He  was  also  a  delegate  to  the  Convocation  of  the  Gen- 
eral Grand  Chapter  R.  A.  M.  held  at  Indianapolis  in  1912. 
At  the  laying  of  the  corner  stone  of  the  first  building  of 
the  Masonic  Home  at  Sullivan.  Illinois,  he  delivered  an 
address  in  behalf  of  the  splendid  gift  of  land  by  Robert 
Miller,  set  forth  in  his  will  to  the  Masons  of  Illinois,  and 
same  in  manuscript  form  was  deposited  in  the  corner  stone 
thereof. 

He  also  wrote  a  complete  history  of  Cryptic  Mason- 
ry, with  references  to  its  Legends  and  Symbolisms  as  adopt- 
ed and  practiced  throughout  the  United  States,  which  was 
deposited  in  the  corner  stone  of  the  Masonic  Temple  in 
Bloomington,  April  25,  1911. 

At  the  close  of  the  Convocation  of  the  Grand  Chap- 
ter R.  A.  M.,  1912,  he,  in  his  capacity  as  Grand  High 
Priest,  appointed  a  committee  to  take  into  consideration 
the  feasibility  of  a  contribution  by  the  Grand  Chapter  for 
the  erection  of  a  hospital  building  at  the  Masonic  Home 
at  Sullivan.  At  the  Convocation  of  the  Grand  Chapter 
of  1913,  the  aforesaid  committee  made  its  report  and  in 
the  same  concluded  as  follows :  "Your  Committee  con- 
gratulates this  Grand  Chapter  that  M.  E.  Grand  High  Priest 
in  his  address,  has  taken  such  a  humanitarian  and  commend- 
able view  of  this  matter,  and  has  presented  the  same  in  his 
address  before  this  Grand  Chapter."  In  his  address  of 
the  latter  year  he  recommended  an  appropriation  which 
should  be  fitting  and  adequate  for  the  creation  of  a  hospital 
building  at  the  aforesaid  Masonic  Home,  and  this  was  con- 
curred in  by  the  Grand  Chapter  and  it  made  an  appropria- 
tion of  $50,000  for  that  purpose. 

11 


In  conclusion,  I  wish  to  say  that  Brother  Carlock 
made  an  enviable  record  as  an  enthusiastic  and  hard  worker 
in  the  various  Masonic  Orders  of  the  York  Rite.  It  is 
said  that  he  stands  in  the  foremost  ranks  of  Illinois,  in 
both  the  ritualism  and  history  of  the  Orders.  He  is  a 
faithful,  correct  and  energetic  worker  in  all  Masonic  bodies 
and  orders  to  which  he  belongs,  and  a  constant  reader  of 
Masonic  literature.  He  holds  Masonic  principles  and 
teachings  as  near  and  dear  to  his  heart,  as  those  of  the 
Church,  and  in  contact  with  the  world  and  his  fellow  men 
has  endeavored  to  adhere  strictly  to  the  tenets  of  the 
Mason's  profession,  namely:  "Brotherly  Love,  Relief  and 
Truth." 


12 


SHORT  BIOGRAPHY  OF  T.  W.  STEVENSON 

By  The  Author 

Thomas  W.  Stevenson,  the  writer  of  the  Masonic 
record  of  William  Bryan  Carlock,  was  born  in  Christian 
County,  Ky.,  August  16,  1851.  He  was  raised  to  the  sub- 
lime degree  of  Master  Mason,  December  13,  1872,  in 
Bloomington  Lodge  No.  43,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.  In  De- 
cember, 1880  he  was  elected  Worshipful  Master  of  said 
Lodge  and  by  successive  re-elections  served  the  same  in  that 
capacity  for  the  years  1881,  1882,  1883  and  1884,  and  is 
the  oldest  Past  Master  residing  in  the  county.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  Bloomington  Council,  No.  43,  R.  and  S.  M. ; 
Bloomington  Chapter  No.  2<>,  R.  A.  M.;  De  Molay  Com- 
mandery  No.  24,  K.  T. ;  Bloomington  Consistory  and  Ma- 
hommed  Temple,  Ancient  Arabic  Order  Nobles  of  Mystic 
Shrine.  He  has  also  served  some  of  the  above  bodies  as 
Treasurer  and  Secretary. 

He  is  perhaps  the  oldest  Mason  in  point  of  service 
in  McLean  County.  It  can  be  safely  said  that  he  has  of- 
ficated  at  more  Masonic  funerals  than  any  other  Mason 
in  the  State  of  Illinois.  He  has  faithfully  lived  up  to 
the  teachings  of  the  institution  of  Masonry  and  holds  its 
principles  to  his  heart  as  religiously  sacred  in  his  contact 
and  dealings  with  his  fellow  men. 


13 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  ABRAHAM  W. 

CARLOCK 

By   The   Author 

Abraham  W.  Carlock  was  born  April  7,  1800,  in 
Hamphire  County,  West  Virginia,  near  the  Potomac  River. 
He  died  in  Kansas  Township,  Woodford  County,  Illinois. 
February  18,  1884.  His  paternal  grandfather  Hawkus 
Carlock,  was  born  near  Glasgow,  Scotland  and  went  to 
Germany  with  his  parents  in  1750  and  emigrated  to  this 
country  from  Saxony,  Germany  and  settled  in  Virginia, 
near  the  North  Carolina  and  Tennessee  lines,  shortly  be- 
fore the  outbreak  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  He  was  a 
soldier  in  the  Continental  Army  under  George  Washington. 
In  about  two  years  after  Abraham's  birth,  his  father  and 
family  moved  to  Overton  County,  Tennessee,  near  Living- 
ston. He  was  in  every  sense  fitted  for  pioneer  life  and 
became  a  sturdy  farmer  in  a  wild,  undeveloped,  wooded 
country.  Wild  game  was  very  plentiful,  including  bear, 
and  this  man  of  the  forest  became  a  famous  hunter. 
Abraham  W.  Carlock  was  one  of  a  family  of  ten  children, 
and  he  grew  up  to  be  an  industrious  and  frugal  young 
man.  This  family  raised  corn,  tobacco,  sweet  potatoes  and 
hogs  for  the  southern  markets.  Their  hogs  would  stray 
away  from  home  and  become  as  wild  as  the  wildest  deer, 
and  when  once  wild,  they  could  only  be  corralled  by  well 
trained  dogs. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-three  Abraham  W.  Carlock  was 
married  to  Mary  Goodpasture,  the  daughter  of  John  and 
Margery  (Bryan)  Goodpasture.  She  was  one  of  a  family 
of  fourteen  children,  and  her  father  was  of  English  ex- 

14 


traction,  while  her  mother  was  of  Scotcrrlrish  descent. 
In  the  spring  of  1827  Abraham  W.  Carlock  with  his  wife 
and  two  children,  John  and  Madison,  moved  to  Morgan 
County,  this  state.  Their  outfit  enroute  consisted  of  one 
ox  team,  an  old  covered  wagon,  necessary  bed  clothing,  an 
axe,  a  crowbar  and  a  few  cooking  utensils.  He  walked 
nearly  the  entire  distance.  They  crossed  the  Ohio  River 
in  a  ferry  boat  at  Shawneetown.  At  the  expiration  of 
about  two  years  he  left  Morgan  County  and  moved  to 
Dry  Grove,  in  McLean  County,  where  the  family  remained 
about  one  year  and  in  1831  moved  to  White  Oak  Grove, 
locating  in  Woodford  County. 

At  the  time  Mr.  Carlock  located  in  White  Oak  Grove, 
there  were  quite  a  number  of  Indians  camped  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Mackinaw  River,  a  few  miles  directly  north 
of  his  residence.  These  were  principally  of  the  Kickapoo 
tribe.  They  showed  every  disposition  to  be  friendly  to  the 
whites,  and  would  trade  their  trinkets  for  the  necessaries 
of  life.  It  seems  quite  certain  they  took  no  part  in  the 
Black  Hawk  war.  This  was  also  true  of  the  Potawo- 
tamies  as  a  tribe,  and  controlled  by  their  Chief  Shabbona. 
But  those  who  were  in  position  to  know  best,  claimed  that 
a  few  of  these  warriors,  having  a  blood-thirsty  make-up, 
sneaked  away  from  their  peaceful  influence  and  linked 
their  fortunes  with  old  Black  Hawk.  The  burial  mounds 
of  the  Kicapoos  may  yet  be  found  in  the  territory  of  the 
Mackinaw.  These  Kickapoo  Indians  gradually  disap- 
peared like  the  Arab  of  the  desert,  who  "silently  folded  his 
tent  and  stole  away,"  and  the  settlers  did  not  know  where 
they  went. 

A  few  hundred  yards  south  of  the  Carlock  cabin  was 
located  the  Indian  town  of  "Lookout  Point."     It  was  se- 

15 


lected  in  accordance  with  the  instinct  of  the  Indian  char- 
acter for  its  high  elevation.  From  this  point  the  human 
•eye  takes  a  far  reach.  The  vision  easily  passes  over  the 
timber  on  the  west  into  Tazewell  County,  while  to  the 
southeast,  Bloomington  with  its  Standpipe  may  be  seen 
on  a  clear  day.  The  trail  here  was  quite  distinct,  passing 
to  the  Mississippi  River  and  east  to  the  "old  battleground 
of  Tippecanoe."  At  this  lookout  'point  and  celebrated 
Indian  rendezvous,  the  writer  has  picked  up  fine  arrow 
specimens  and  other  quaint  Indian  relics  and  a  few  bay- 
onets were  also  found  and  one  or  two  Indian  mortars. 
A  more  beautiful  or  secluded  spot  for  the  Indian  camp 
ground  could  not  have  been  found  in  central  Illinois,  and 
while  no  great  tree  stood  there  as  the  simile  of  the  signal 
watch  tower  of  Black  Hawk,  as  at  Rock  Island,  yet  an  en- 
emy approaching  from  either  direction,  would  have  been 
seen  in  apt  time  to  prepare  for  defense.  My  father  was  of 
the  opinion  that  these  Indians  were  kindly  disposed  when 
properly  treated  and  kept  from  the  evil  effects  of  whiskey 
and  that  they  were  not  near  as  treacherous  as  some  of  the 
higher  and  more  prominent  races  of  men. 

In  the  fall  of  1833,  Mr.  Carlock  made  a  trip  on 
horseback  for  exploration  to  the  north  part  of  the  State, 
especially  traversing  the  present  counties  of  LaSalle,  De 
Kalb,  Kane  and  Kendall.  It  was  while  on  this  trip  he 
met  and  shared  the  hospitality  of  the  celebrated  Indian, 
Shabbona,  Chief  of  the  Potawotamies.  Shabbona's  pos- 
sessions and  his  tribe  at  that  time  were  located  at  a  beauti- 
ful grove,  near  the  present  town  of  Shabbona  in  De  Kalb 
County.  Some  years  ago  a  monument  was  erected  at 
Shabbona  Park,  the  scene  of  the  Indian  Creek  massacre, 
and  was  unveiled  and  dedicated  in  the  presence  of  about 

16 


five  thousand  people.  This  massacre  occurred  on  May  20, 
1832,  and  Shabbona  rode  all  night,  May  19th,  in  order  to 
reach  that  settlement  and  also  dispatched  messengers  to 
that  locality  to  warn  the  whites  of  danger  but  many  did 
not  heed  the  warning  of  the  old  Warrior.  History  re- 
counts the  fact  that  this  worthy  Chief  had  saved  the  lives 
of  hundreds  of  white  people  from  the  fate  of  the  scalping 
knife  and  tomahawk.  Mr.  Carlock  was  deeply  impressed 
with  the  kindness  shown  him  by  this  wonderful  man,  for 
while  in  camp  he  was  sick  and  remained  all  night  with 
Shabbona,  and  partook  of  his  medicines  and  other  kindly 
attentions. 

Near  the  site  of  the  City  of  Ottawa,  Mr.  Carlock  was 
joined  by  one  Mr.  Hallenbeck,  who  remained  with  the 
prospector  three  or  four  days.  It  was  while  on  this  trip 
Mr.  Carlock  witnessed  the  most  celebrated  and  beautiful 
heavenly  phenomena  that  has  ever  occured  in  this  State, 
namely  the  ''Shooting  Stars"  or  "Falling  Meteors."  This 
display  occurred  on  the  morning  of  November  13,  1833,  be- 
ginning about  two  o'clock  and  lasting  until  daylight.  It 
was,  so  to  speak,  a  display  of  fireworks  of  the  most  impos- 
ing grandeur,  filling  the  entire  vault  of  the  heavens  with 
myriads  of  fire  balls,  resembling  sky  rockets,  undefined 
luminous  bodies  and  phosphoric  lines.  The  point  from 
which  they  emanated  was  in  the  constellation  Leo,  and  they 
fell  as  thick  as  snow  flakes  in  December.  The  superstitious 
were  alarmed  and  in  some  instances  reason  was  dethroned. 

Astronomers  have  as  yet  been  unable  to  fully  explain 
this  mysterious  phenomena.  Such  was  its  extent,  that  it 
has  been  traced  from  the  Jongtitude  of  61  degrees  in  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  to  longtitude  100  degrees  in  Central  Mex- 
ico, and  from  the  North  American  Lakes  to  the  West  Ind- 
ies. 

17 


My  father  always  considered  himself  a  McLean 
County  man,  as  his  interests  were  more  largely  in  that 
County,  although  his  residence  was  in  Woodford  County, 
about  one  hundred  yards  from  the  County  line. 

He  and  his  devoted  wife  were  the  parents  of  twelve 
children  and  ten  of  these  grew  to  manhood  and  woman- 
hood. I  have  been  fortunate  enough  to  preserve  valuable 
information  and  data  for  this  historical  sketch. 

Abraham  W.  Carlock's  life  was  one  of  continual 
hardships  and  with  it  also  is  coupled  many  amusing  in- 
cidents. Somewhere  in  the  late  forties  it  was  discovered 
that  there  was  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land  in  Sec- 
tion Thirty-three  in  White  Oak  Township  in  this  County, 
that  had  not  been  entered  and  was  still  government  land. 
Mr.  Franklin  Rowell,  an  early  settler,  discovered  this  fact, 
about  the  same  time  my  father  did.  The  United  States 
Land  Office  for  this  district  was  then  located  at  Danville 
and  by  some  strange  coincidence,  each  without  the  know- 
ledge of  the  other,  started  one  morning  long  before  day- 
light on  horse  back  for  Danville  to  secure  by  pre-emption 
the  coveted  tract.  Mr.  Rowell  had  started  a  little  ahead 
of  Mr.  Carlock  and  the  ride  in  the  end  was  an  exciting 
one.  They  both  entered  the  Land  Office  about  the  same 
time.  As  they  were  good  friends  and  neighbors  the  matter 
was  compromised  by  Mr.  Rowell  taking  the  choicest  eighty 
and  Mr.  Carlock  the  other  eighty.  They  rode  home  to- 
gether and  chatted  gleefully  over  this  exciting  episode. 
The  price  paid  was  $1.25  per  acre. 

The  winter  of  1830  and  18-31  marks  the  era  of  the  deep 
snow.  Many  were  the  privations  of  the  early  settlers  dur- 
ing that  severe  winter.     The  snow  continued  to   fall  for 


18 


many  days  and  it  reached  the  depth  of  about  four  feet  on 
the  level  and  in  many  places  the  drifts  were  five  to  fifteen 
feet  in  depth.  After  the  formation  of  a  thick  crust  on 
the  top  of  the  snow  the  settlers  drove  their  teams  with 
safety  over  it  and  frequently  would  drive  over  staked  and 
ridered  rail  fences.  He  had  some  hogs  that  were  buried 
so  deep  under  the  snow  drifts  that  he  had  hard  work  to 
find  them  and  keep  them  from  smothering  to  death.  The 
wild  deer  died  of  starvation  by  the  hundreds  and  the  wolves 
and  other  carniverous  animals  fared  nicely  by  devouring 
their  dead  carcasses.  The  temperature  at  times  was  very 
low  and  several  people  were  frozen  to  death.  Ingress  and 
egress  was  out  of  the  question  and  close  neighbors  did  not 
see  much  of  each  other  for  a  period  of  five  months.  Mr. 
Carlock,  in  recounting  the  stories  of  this  wonderful  and 
most  destructive  event,  said  that  it  was  a  winter  to  try 
men's  souls  but  that  the  sturdy  pioneers  stood  the  shock 
unflinchingly  and  complained  not. 

He  has  often  recounted  the  horrors  of  the  so-called 
"sudden  change"  which  occurred  in  the  month  of  Decem- 
ber, 1836.  He  said  the  morning  was  mild  and  it  had 
rained  and  there  was  a  slush  of  snow  on  the  ground. 
About  ten  o'clock  he  had  started  out  for  a  hunt  on  horse- 
back. He  reached  a  point  about  three  or  four  miles  from 
his  home  and  killed  one  deer  and  was  wet  to  the  skin  from 
the  drizzling  rain.  Suddenly  and  almost  without  warning 
the  wind  shifted  from  the  south  to  the  northwest  and  made 
a  frightful  noise  in  the  timber.  He  put  the  spurs  to 
his  horse  and  rode  towards  home  at  a  gallop.  On  ar- 
riving at  his  gate  the  ice  was  sufficient  to  bear  his  weight 
and  his  clothes  were  frozen  upon  his  body.  The  wind 
blew  with  great  velocity  and   freezing  the  mist  gave  the 

19 


appearance  of  clouds  of  white  smoke  rising  before  it. 
Scores  of  people  lost  their  lives  and  he  told  of  an  instance 
where  the  settler  who  was  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  many 
miles  away  from  home,  killed  his  horse,  disemboweled  it 
and  crawled  into  the  cavity  to  save  his  life,  but  was  never- 
theless frozen  to  death.  He  could  narrate  hair  breadth 
escapes  by  the  score. 

After  this  terrible  change  many  of  the  settlers  became 
discouraged  and  left  the  country  for  warmer  climes.  He 
also  well  remembered  the  spring  of  1844,  which  was  known 
as  the  wet  season.  He  said  it  commenced  to  rain  about 
the  middle  of  April  and  kept  it  up  until  August.  The 
creeks  and  rivers  were  all  overflowed  and  the  level  lands 
all  under  water.  Crops  were  almost  ruined  by  the 
excessive  rains;  stock  became  diseased  by  reason  thereof 
and  died.  The  suffering  among  the  people  was  also  great 
throughout  the  state.  He  also  spoke  of  the  fearful  wet 
season  of  1858,  and  that  he  did  not  finish  planting  corn 
that  year,  until  the  fourth  day  of  July,  but  he  added  that 
that  season  for  rainfall  was  nothing  to  compare  with  the 
one  of  1844.  During  the  forties  he  became  a  cripple  from 
moving  and  lifting  heavy  logs  and  for  several  years  there- 
after work  to  him  was  very  irksome. 

When  the  "Black  Hawk  War"  was  ended  he  came 
into  possession  of  the  sorrel  mare  named  "Blaze".  She  had 
been  ridden  into  battle  by  one  of  the  volunteer  soldiers 
from  this  county,  Gen.  Gridley,  and  was  in  the  thickest 
of  the  fight  (rather  retreat)  of  the  celebrated  encounter  at 
"Stillman's  Run",  where  Captain  Adams  and  a  squad  of 
his  bravest  men  lost  their  lives.  This  animal  was  as 
fleet  as  a  deer  and  Mr.  Carlock  prized  her  so  highly  that 
he  kept  her  on  his  farm  until  she  died,  being  thirty-two 
years  old. 

20 


The  Mackinaw  River  was  the  fishing  ground  for  the 
early  settlers  of  that  community  and  the  savory  Red  Horse 
Fish  was  quite  abundant.  He  told  how  in  the  winter  of 
1840  he  killed  one  cold  morning,  and  at  other  times  during 
that  winter,  over  one  hundred  fish  with  an  axe.  He  had 
gone  in  search  of  some  lost  stock  and  in  crossing  the  river 
at  "Wyatt's  Ford"  discovered  that  the  fish  were  wedged 
tightly  under  the  ice  at  the  seep  holes  in  the  shallows  at 
the  crossing,  where  they  had  com-e  in  large  numbers  to 
get  air.  The  ice  on  the  creek  was  frozen  to  a  great  depth, 
but  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  dispatch  them  with  the  pole  of 
his  axe.  having  hastily  secured  it  from  his  home.  Wolves 
were  to  be  found  in  great  abundance  and  they  became  very 
annoying  and  destructive  to  young  stock  and  poultry.  They 
were  caught  in  traps  and  run  down  by  the  infuriated 
settlers  and  killed  with  iron  rods  and  bludgeons. 

My  father  was  a  man  six  feet  in  heighth,  fair  com- 
plexion, well  built  and  of  a  vigorous  constitution.  He  was 
very  active,  full  of  life  and  good  humor  and  did  as  much 
work  as  any  hand  on  his  farm.  His  industry,  sagacity  and 
good  management  enabled  him  to  accumulate  some  fairly 
valuable  properties.  He  was  jovial,  kind-hearted  and  hos~ 
pitable  by  nature  and  counted  his  friends  by  the  score.  He 
never  held  any  public  office,  except  that  of  School  Di- 
rector. In  politics  he  was  an  uncompromising  Democrat. 
Cast  his  first  presidential  vote  for  Andrew  Jackson.  He 
was  known  far  and  near  under  the  sobriquet  of  "Old  Dem- 
ocrat" and  he  would  have  regarded  any  paper  signed  by 
that  nickname  as  absolutely  binding  upon  him ;  but  his 
word  was  as  good  as  his  bond  and  it  is  said  of  him  that  he 
never  himself  gave  or  -exacted  a  promisory  note.  He  did 
not  get  much  in  debt  and  scrupulously  carried  out  all  his 

21 


obligations.  The  early  settlers  had  implicit  confidence  in 
each  other  and  would  share  the  last  crumb  and  make  every 
reasonable  sacrifice  to  assist  neighbors  and  the  new- 
comers. 

When  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  commenced  oper- 
ating its  cars,  Mr.  Carlock  rode  on  horseback  to  Hud- 
son to  witness  the  passing  of  the  first  passenger  train,  and 
while  he  delighted  to  see  the  puffing  steam  engine  and  the 
rapid  development  of  the  country,  he  never  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  riding  in  a  railroad  car,  a  steam  boat  or  even  an 
omnibus.  He  was  fond  of  home  and  did  not  travel 
around  much;  yet  he  was  courteous  to  all,  just  and  upright 
in  his  dealings  with  his  fellow  men.  His  home  was  the 
headquarters  for  the  weary  traveler  and  in  it  there  was  al- 
ways for  him  good  cheer  and  a  hearty  welcome,  and  his 
hospitality  was  rendered  without  money  and  without  price. 
He  was  well  posted  in  the  rapid  changes  of  progress  and 
important  events  of  the  day  and  was  a  constant  reader  of 
good  literature.  His  memory  was  tenacious  and  he  could 
amuse  his  children  and  his  guests  with  laughable  stories 
and  startling  experiences,  anecdotes,  the  rapid  progress  of 
the  country  and  the  turmoils  of  the  early  times. 

In  the  early  forties  Abraham  Lincoln  made  my 
father's  home  a  stopping  place  for  rest  and  refreshment  in 
his  travels  to  and  from  Versailles  and  Metamora.  to  attend 
the  courts.  Frequently  they  exchanged  anecdotes  and 
stories  and  they  talked  on  politics.  Although  they  did  not 
always  harmonize  on  the  political  questions  of  the  day,  yet 
they  were  close  friends.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  a  guest  of  my 
father  without  money  or  price.  He  regarded  Lincoln  as 
a  man  who  had  the  courage  of  his  convictions,  just  in  his 
dealings  with  humanity,  an  affable  gentlemanu  of  the  "Old 

22 


School,"   and   an   exemplary   type   of   true    Americanism. 

In  religion  Mr.  Carlock  was  a  staunch  and  consistent 
CTniversalist.  He  was  a  careful  reader  of  the  ''Star  of 
the  West",  an  organ  of  that  faith,  published  in  Cincinnati, 
Ohio,  and  in  support  of  his  views  had  also  formerly  read 
several  books.  He  talked  and  urged  the  doctrine  of  a 
better  life  and  contended  that  humanity  gets  its  just  re- 
wards and  punishment  here,  according  to  the  deeds  done 
in  the  body  and  that  the  hoped  for  hereafter  is  made  bet- 
ter by  living  the  best  possible  life  in  the  realms  of  the 
known  world.  That  the  more  of  love,  truth,  honor,  jus- 
tice, charity  and  all  the  nobler  sentiments  of  humanity  are 
injected  into  our  natures,  the  more  divinely  we  become, 
and  in  the  larger  sense  reflect  the  image  of  God.  That  the 
Supreme  Being  does  for  us  in  the  elevation  of  the  mind 
what  we  willingly  do  for  ourselves,  that  we  should  know 
right  from  wrong  and  ever  cling  to  the  right,  and  that  the 
greatest  blessings  and  happiness  come  to  the  human  race 
from  the  highest  good  and  noblest  impulses  we  can  be- 
stow upon  our  fellow  beings  and  from  living  the  purest  and 
most  exemplary  life. 

Abraham  W.  Carlock,  though  modest  and  secluded  in 
his  make-up  and  though  firmly  attached  to  his  home  and 
family,  was  one  of  the  best  known  and  most  respected  of 
the  early  settlers,  and  the  life  he  lived  could  well  be  imitated 
by  others.  He  lived  to  see  his  dream  of  the  future  pros- 
perity of  this  country  more  than  fully  realized,  and  carried 
with  him  to  his  death  the  happy  thought  of  a  useful  and 
busy  life,  and  in  the  visions  of  a  heavenly  clime  and  like 
Ben  Adhem  of  old,  who  saw  an  angel  writing  in  a  book  of 
gold,  and  to  its  presence  in  the  room  he  said :  "I  pray  thee 
write  me  as  one  who  loves  his  fellow  men." 

23 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  GENERAL  ROBERT 

E.LEE 

By  The   Author 

Read   by   Miss  Mary   Hansen   at   the   Meeting:  of  the   Virgnians 
at  Miller  Park,   September  22,   1922. 

It  is  my  delight  to  speak  and  write  in  my  opinion  of 
one  of  the  greatest  and  most  remarkable  men  of  modern 
times  whom  nearly  all  Virginians,  whether  friend  or  foe, 
learned  to  love  and  admire. 

Gen.  Robert  Edmund  Lee  was  born  in  Westmoreland 
County,  Virginia,  on  the  ninth  day  of  January,  1807.  He 
died  at  Lexington,  Virginia,  on  the  twelfth  day  of  October 
1870,  with  the  simplest  ceremony  attending  his  funeral 
at  his  request.  Nearly  all  the  Lees  in  Virginia  were  the  lin- 
eal descendants  from  the  common  ancestor,  Richard  Lee, 
who  emigrated  to  America  in  the  year  1641,  and  settled 
in  Virginia.  He  was  the  father  of  Richard  Lee  II,  who 
was  a  brother  of  John  Hancock  Lee,  and  the  latter  was 
the  father  of  one  Stephen  Lee,  and  he  was  the  father  of 
Henry  Lee,  of  Kentucky,  who  was  born  in  Virginia  in 
the  year  1758,  and  emigrated  to  Kentucky  at  a  very  early 
date  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion forming  Kentucky  as  a  state.  He  held  the  position 
of  Circuit  Judge  of  Mason  County,  Kentucky,  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  and  died  there  in  the  year  1846. 

On  the  other  line  of  the  Lee  descendants,  Richard  II 
was  the  father  of  Henry  who  Was  the  father  of  Henry  Lee, 
dubbed  and  familiarly  known  as  "Light  Horse  Harry."  He 
became  a  noted  commander  of  cavalry  in  the  War  of  the 
Revolution,  having  raised  and  organized  the  famous  cav- 
alry troop     known  as     "Lee's     Legion."     "Light    Horse 

24 


Harry"  was  born  in  Westmoreland  County,  Virginia,  in 
January,  175G,  and  died  at  his  home  in  that  county  in 
March,  1818. 

Thomas  Lee  was  a  brother  of  the  aforesaid  Henry 
Lee,  and  the  former  was  the  father  of  six  eminent  and  dis- 
tinguished sons,  namely,  Thomas  Ludwell  Lee,  Phillip  Lud- 
well  Lee,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  Francis  Light  foot  Lee,  Wil- 
liam Lee  and  Arthur  Lee. 

Richard  Henry  Lee  was  an  orator  and  statesman  of 
rare  ability  and  was  assigned  by  Congress  to  write  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  under  his  resolution,  but  ow- 
ing to  the  fact  that  he  was  sick  at  the  time  this  duty  was 
to  be  performed,  it  devolved  upon  Thomas  Jefferson  to 
write  it.  He  also  introduced  a  resolution  in  the  Legisla- 
ture of  Virginia  forever  prohibiting  the  further  importa- 
tion of  slaves  into  that  State,  which  was  adopted.  Both 
he  and  his  brother,  Francis  Lightfoot,  were  signers  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence. 

Robert  Edmund  Lee,  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  his 
second  son  and  was  about  eleven  years  of  age  when  his 
father  died.  A  short  time  after  the  death  of  Robert's 
father  his  mother  with  her  little  family  moved  to  Alex- 
andria, Virginia,  in  order  to  secure  better  educational  fa- 
cilities for  the  children,  and  while  there  Robert  E.  was 
taught  his  catechism  by  an  Episcopal  Bishop  of  Virginia. 
We  also  here  mention  that  General  FitzHugh  Lee,  of  Con- 
federate and  Spanish-American  War  fame,  was  a  nephew 
of  Robert  E.  Lee.  At  an  early  age  Robert  evinced  a  de- 
sire and  aptitude  for  military  training.  At  the  age  of 
eighteen  he  entered  the  Military  Academy  at  West  Point 
as  a  cadet  and  graduated  therefrom  when  he  was  about 
twenty-two  years  of  age.     Soon  after  leaving  the  Academy 

25 


he  received  an  appointment  in  the  United  States  Army 
as  a  Captain  of  an  Engineer  Corps,  the  duties  of  which 
position  took  him  over  a  wide  scope  of  territory,  including 
the  states  of  the  Great  Northwest  and  one  time  he  was 
at  St.  Louis,  directing  operations  for  the  course  of  the 
Mississippi  River. 

After  serving  the  U.  S.  Government  for  a  number  of 
years  he  went  with  its  army  in  1846  in  the  Invasion  and 
War  with  Mexico,  serving  most  of  the  time  under  Gen. 
Winifield  S.  Scott,  who  was  also  a  Virginian.  In  the  cam- 
paign in  Mexico  he  was  a  Captain  of  the  Engineer's  Corps 
and  was  also  Chief  of  Staff  to  General  Scott,  He  rendered 
signal  service  in  the  battles  won  by  General  Scott,  who  took 
part  in  the  battles  of  Buena  Vista,  Cerro  Gorda,  Chapul" 
tapec,  Molino  Del  Ray,  the  siege  of  Vera  Cruz,  and  ac- 
companied the  armies  of  Generals  Scott  and  Taylor  in  their 
triumphal  march  into  the  City  of  Mexico.  General  Scott 
was  free  to  admit  that  had  it  not  been  for  the  efficient  serv- 
ices rendered  by  Captain  Lee  and  his  Corps  of  Engineers, 
he  might  have  been  loser  in  some  of  those  engagements. 
General  Scott  in  his  reports  alluded  to  Lee,  Beauregard 
and  McCkllan  as  officers  who  performed  their  duties  well 
and  with  great  valor  and  success,  but  in  these  reports  he 
always  mentioned  Lee  first. 

In  the  year  1831  Robert  married  Mary  Custis,  a  great- 
granddaughter  and  heiress  of  Martha  Custis  Washington, 
thus  placing  him  in  close  marriage  relationship  to  the 
"Father  of  His  Country."  They  raised  a  family  of  four 
children,  two  boys  and  two  girls.  The  two  sons  were  con- 
stantly with  him  in  the  Armies  of  Northern  Virginia  dur- 
ing the  four  years'  struggle. 

I  have  had  some  correspondence  with  the  oldest  son, 

26 


George  Washington  Custis  Lee,  now  deceased.  He  fur- 
nished me  with  some  valuable  information  concerning  the 
genealogy  of  the  Lees  in  Virginia. 

In  this  article  I  have  concluded  to  speak  of  General 
Lee  in  his  five-fold  character  as  soldier,  citizen,  in  home 
life,  as  Christian,  and  educator.  General  Lee  had  no  ad- 
miration nor  taste  tor  politics  and  took  no  part  in  it,  al- 
though he  had  been  offered  positions  of  trust  in  the  civil 
capacity  at  the  hands  of  the  people  of  Virginia.  He  was 
eminently  a  soldier  by  inclination  and  nothing  else  seemed 
to  absorb  his  mind.  In  1852  he  was  appointed  by  the 
United  States  Government  Superintendent  of  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point,  which  office  be  held  until  the 
year  1855  when  he  retired  from  that  duty  and  accepted  a 
command  as  Colonel  of  Cavalry  in  the  United  States  Army 
and  held  such  position  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War. 
Recurring  to  his  military  career,  I  wish  to  note  that  he  was 
wounded  in  one  of  the  engagements  in  Mexico,  and  after 
the  close  of  the  Mexican  War  he  participated  in  the  engage- 
ments against  the  Indians  of  the  West. 

His  old  home  and  plantation  is  at  Arlington  Heights, 
which  lies  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Potomac  River  from 
Washington,  and  is  one  of  the  most  picturesque  places  I 
ever  beheld  in  the  United  States.  I  visited  this  home  and 
historic  spot  in  the  summer  of  1876  and  in  company  with 
a  gentleman  from  Ohio  we  viewed  several  places  on  the 
plantation,  including  the  National  Cemetery  and  very  much 
enjoyed  a  look  through  Lee's  mansion  with  its  many  rooms 
and  equipments.  The  custodian  of  th-e  place  was  a  Ger- 
man weighing  about  three  hundred  pounds  and  we  were 
entertained  quite  hospitably  for  two  hours  in  which  time 
he  showed  us  many  valuable  relics  of  this  historic  home. 

27 


I  think  the  largest  dog  I  ever  saw  in  my  life  was  there  as 
an  alarm-barker  to  give  warning  of  approaching  enemies 
or  friends.  I  talked  with  a  number  of  Lee's  old  slaves, 
particularly  one  Auntie  darky  who  spoke  about  the  Old 
General  with  tears  in  her  eyes.  She  said  "I  thought  my 
heart  would  break  when  Massa  Lee  left  for  the  wah!" 
She  claimed  to  be  110  years  of  age.  Lee,  however,  was 
a  hater  of  slavery  and  freed  the  major  part  of  his  slaves 
before  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War.  His  wife,  Mary, 
owned  a  number  of  slaves  in  her  own  right  which  she 
had  inherited  from  her  parents  and  which  she,  by  an  ar- 
rangement with  her  husband,  gradually  manumitted  before 
the  issuing  of  President  Lincoln's  Emancipation  Proclama- 
tion. 

Richard  Henry  Lee,  Orator  and  Statesman,  was  a 
strong  Anti'Slavery  Advocate  and  was  also  a  member  of 
the  Virginia  Legislature,  and  introduced  a  bill  into  the 
same  to  prevent  the  further  shipment  of  slaves  into  Vir- 
ginia. He  was  a  co-worker  with  Adams  and  Jefferson  and 
Patrick  Henry.  He  was  also  the  first  and  prime  mover 
for  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  undoubtedly 
would  have  written  the  same  himself,  had  it  not  been  for 
the  fact  that  he  was  at  home  and  sick  at  th-e  time  this 
most  wonderful  document  was  promulgated. 

General  Lee  believed  in  the  right  of  secession  but  he 
was  bitterly  opposed  to  his  state  seceding.  Some  half  dozen 
states  had  gone  out  of  the  Union  by  acts  of  secession  and  fi- 
nally a  like  ordinance  was  adopted  by  the  State  of  Virginia, 
on  April  18,  18G1.  General  Scott  was  in  command  of  the 
Armies  of  the  United  States  at  this  time,  but  he  regarded 
General  Lee  as  the  best  man  to  lead  the  Union  forces  in 
the  suppression  of  the  rebellion.     He  importuned  the  gov- 

28 


eminent  at  Washington,  through  President  Lincoln,  to 
secure  at  all  hazards  the  services  of  General  Lee  in  behalf 
of  the  United  States  in  the  terrible  struggle  which  was 
then  fast  approaching.  The  man  who  was  designated  by 
Lincoln  to  interview  General  Lee  on  this  matter  was  Gen- 
eral Francis  P.  Blair,  of  Missouri.  He  held  a  long  inter- 
view with  General  Lee  in  his  home  in  Arlington.  General 
Scott  urged  that  Lee  be  secured  to  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment at  all  hazards,  "For,"  said  he,  "Lee  will  be  equal  to 
an  army  of  50,000  men  in  the  Union  cause." 

Lee,  after  mature  deliberation,  turned  down  the  ap- 
peals to  enlist  in  the  service  of  the  Union  as  against  seces- 
sion and  decided  that  honor  and  duty  compelled  him  to  fol- 
low his  state  in  its  course,  and  in  this  view  of  the 
situation,  he  was  opposed  to  coercion.  He  was  summoned 
to  appear  before  the  Virginia  legislature  and  by  its  act  ac- 
cepted the  command  as  General  of  all  the  military  forces 
of  the  State  of  Virginia. 

General  Lee  was  honest  in  his  convictions  of  the  right 
of  secession  but  feared  and  trembled  for  the  consequences 
that  he  thought  would  inevitably  come  to  his  state  by  going 
out  of  the  Union.  He  contended  that  it  was  inexpedi- 
ent and  ill-advised  for  his  State  and  the  other  Southern 
States  to  secede,  believing,  as  he  said,  that  such  a  course 
would  spell  utter  ruin  for  the  South,  either  with  or  without 
a  resort  to  coercion.  He  further  contended  that  a  Southern 
Republic  founded  on  the  oligarchical  rock  of  slavery  would 
be  a  decaying  one  and  would  not  be  in  a  position  to  com- 
pete with  the  nations  of  the  earth.  He.  like  Lincoln,  was 
opposed  to  the  extension  of  slavery  and  he  had  hoped  that 
notwithstanding  all  the  clamour,  the  Union  might  be  pre- 
served without  bloodshed.     And  even  after  the  war  was  in 

29 


full  progress  he  said  to  Jefferson  Davis,  ''If  I  owned  all 
the  slaves  of  the  South,  I  would  give  them  their  freedom, 
if  by  such  an  act  the  Union  would  be  preserved."  Mr. 
Davis  tersely  replied,  "A  Union  with  the  North  is  unthink- 
able.", 

Before  proceeding  further  with  General  Lee's  military 
career  I  desire  to  digress  a  little  further  with  Lee's  attitude 
on  the  Union  of  the  States.  Let  it  not  be  forgotten  that 
there  was  a  large  sentiment  in  the  East  and  particularly  in 
New  England  before  the  rebellion  that  the  Doctrine  of 
Secession  was  justifiable  and  some  took  strong  grounds 
that  no  coercion  should  be  used  in  bringing  the  seceding 
states  back  into  the  fold.  I  here  quote  from  one  of  the 
leading  and  best  known  men  in  Massachusetts  at  that  time, 
Charles  Francis  Adams,  who  said :  "I  hope  I  should  have 
been  filial  and  unselfish  enough  myself  to  have  done  as 
Lee  did.  Finally,  if  one  may  quote  one's  own  feelings  as 
perhaps  representative  of  many,  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  in  the  certainly  most  improbable,  but  perhaps  not 
wholly  imposibk  contingency  of  a  future  sectional  sep- 
aration in  the  country,  however  much  I  might  disapprove 
of  such  separation  and  its  causes,  I  should  myself  be  first, 
last  and  always  a  son  and  subject  of  New  England  and  of 
Massachusetts." 

Stonewall  Jackson,  Lee's  greatest  chieftain  in  the 
struggle,  who  was  killed  by  his  own  men  at  the  battle  of 
Chancellorsville,  was  bitterly  opposed  to  secession  and  he 
said,  "Whatever  grievances  or  rights  that  the  people  of 
the  South  might  contend  for  should  be  amicably  adjusted 
in  the  Union."  Alexander  H.  Stephens,  of  Georgia,  met 
with  the  convention  of  that  state  and  addressed  it  in  the 
most  eloquent  manner  for  hours,  arguing  pleadingly  against 

30 


the  adoption  of  acts  of  secession  on  the  grounds  that  the 
measure  was  impolitic,  unwise  and  likely  to  bring  disas- 
trous results.  Not  a  few  other  prominent  men  in  different 
parts  of  the  South  held  the  same  view,  but  the  opposite 
opinion  prevailed  and  secession  was  readily  and  enthusi- 
astically accomplished.  Unfortunately,  however,  the  vice- 
president  of  the  Confederacy  was  a  believer  in  the  right 
of  secession.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  there  was  a  large 
Union  sentiment  in  the  South,  even  in  the  cotton  states, 
but  the  secession  work  was  done  in  a  great  part  by  threats 
of  the  fire-eaters,  young  politicians  and  the  fanatical  cotton 
planters  of  that  section.  In  going  from  the  Colonial  to 
the  State  Government,  different  views  were  expressed  in 
relation  to  the  durability  of  the  Federation  of  States.  We 
here  quote  from  the  United  States  Constitution  in  its  pre- 
amble :  ''We,  the  people  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to 
form  a  more  perfect  union,  establish  justice,  insure  do- 
mestic tranquility,  provide  for  the  common  defense,  pro- 
mote the  general  welfare,  and  secure  the  blessings  of  lib- 
erty to  ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain  and  establish 
this  Constitution  for  the  United  States." 

The  extreme  States'  Rights  advocates  artfully  con- 
tended that  in  the  formation  of  the  United  States  each 
state  was  sovereign  in  itself  and  by  this  act  gave  up  no  part 
of  its  rights  of  independent  sovereignty  and  could  at  any 
time,  on  any  pretext  or  no  pretext  at  all,  withdraw  itself 
from  the  Federal  Union.  This  was  the  doctrine  advocated  by 
Calhoun,  Jefferson  C.  Davis  and  other  great  leaders  of  the 
South. 

On  the  other  hand.  Lincoln  and  Douglas  clung  to  the 
opposite  view  that  the  formation  of  the  states  under  the 
Constitution  was  an  act  intended  to  be  permanent  and  that 

31 


the  compact  entered  into  was  an  indissoluble  one.  and  that 
no  one  state  had  the  right  to  withdraw  from  the  Federation 
without  the  unanimous  consent  of  each  and  every 
other  state  in  the  compact. 

I  believe  the  views  of  these  two  great  Statesmen  were 
absolutely  correct  and  now  that  the  compact  has  been  sealed 
in  blood,  the  doctrine  of  state's  rights,  so-called,  can  never 
again  be  invoked. 

How,  recurring  to  the  great  conflict,  I  wish  to  say 
that  General  Lee  was  a  farsighted  man  and  firmly  believed 
contrary  to  the  idea  of  thousands  of  his  countrymen,  that 
the  war  would  be  one  of  long  duration.  He  not  only  or- 
ganized the  troops  of  his  own  state  in  a  short  time  to  the 
number  of  50,000,  but,  those  of  other  states  as  fast  as  the 
volunteers  came  into  Richmond,  into  a  powerful  war  ma- 
chine. 

His  first  campaign  was  in  West  Virginia,  which  lasted 
only  for  a  short  time  as  the  Union  sentiment  in  that  sec- 
tion of  Virginia  was  overwhelmingly  large.  He  then  took 
command  of  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia.  I  shall  not 
go  into  details  of  the  terrible  conflict  that  ensued  between 
the  North  and  the  South.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  first 
year  of  the  war  was  favorable  to  the  Confederates.  On  the 
21st  of  July,  1861,  was  fought  the  Battle  of  Bull  Run  with 
a  signal  defeat  to  the  Union  Army  and  Washington  City 
only  twenty-seven  miles  distant  was  threatened  with  in- 
vasion. Preparations  were  at  once  set  in  motion  on  a 
large  scale  in  both  sections  for  the  building  up  and  equip- 
ping of  large  and  effective  armies. 

The  campaigns  of  1862  were  likewise  favorable  to 
the  Confederates.  During  that  year  the  battles  of  Ma- 
nasses  Junction,  or  Second  Bull  Run ;  Antietam  or  Sharps- 

32 


burg  and  of  Fredericksburg  were  fought  with  terrible  loss 
of  life  on  both  sides  and  the  Peninsula  campaign,  under 
General  McClellan,  was  of  no  particular  consequence  ex- 
cept in  the  great  loss  of  life  and  army  supplies  and  Rich- 
mond was  still  impregnable  and  defiant. 

The  campaigns  of  1863  were  upon  the  whole  decidely 
favorable  to  the  Federal  Armies.  On  July  4  of  that  year, 
the  beleaguered  city  of  Vicksburg  capitulated  to  General 
Grant  with  30,000  prisoners,  together  with  immense  stores 
of  provisions,  ammunitions  and  implements  of  war.  On 
the  First,  Second  and  Third  of  July  of  the  same  year  the 
great  and  bloody  battle  of  Gettysburg  was  fought  and  al- 
though the  battle  was  a  drawn  one,  yet  it  was  very  disas- 
trous to  both  armies,  but  more  particularly  so  to  the  Con- 
federate Army  led  by  Generals  Lee,  Longstreet,  Pickett 
and  other  wonderful  fighting  marshals  of  that  Army.  On 
the  Nineteenth  day  of  September,  1803,  was  begun  the 
great  and  bloody  battle  of  Chicamauga,  which  took  place 
in  the  northwest  corner  of  Georgia,  near  the  Tennessee 
line,  in  the  valley  between  Missionary  Ridge  and  Lookout 
Mountain.  The  Union  Army  under  General  Rosencranz 
was  defeated  and  retreated  to  Chattanooga  but  the  Confed- 
erate Army  was  so  badly  used  up  that  it  could  not  and  did 
not  at  that  time  pursue.  Yet  these  three,  among  the  great 
conflicts  were  the  turning  points  in  the  War.  From  this 
time  until  the  war  was  over  the  Southern  Armies  began  to 
fade  away  by  desertion,  hardships,  and  other  privations  in- 
cident to  war.  The  morale  of  the  Confederate  Armies  was 
fast  giving  away  and  in  the  eyes  of  the  best  military  critics 
it  seemed  impossible  that  the  Confederacy  would  succeed 
in  establishing  its  independence. 

After  the  surrender  of  Vicksburg  to  General  Grant 

33 


and  his  other  important  victories  throughout  Tennessee, 
Georgia  and  Mississippi,  the  government  at  Washington 
looked  upon  him  as  the  logical  man  to  confront  General 
Lee's  army  and  end  the  war.  After  this  matter  was  care- 
fully debated  and  weighed,  General  Grant  was  created 
Lieutenant  General  and  placed  in  command  of  all  the 
Union  forces  engaged  in  the  war.  A  few  months  before 
the  war  closed,  Lee  was  also  created  Lieutenant  General 
and  placed  in  command  of  the  military  forces  in  the  South- 
ern Confederacy.  General  Grant,  on  taking  command,  re- 
quested a  sufficient  army  to  crush  the  rebellion.  Accord- 
ingly, by  the  middle  of  April,  1864,  he  had  under  him  the 
most  magnificent  and  well  equipped  army  of  nearly  200,000 
men,  including  detachments  within  easy  supporting  dis- 
tance. This  vast  army  started  on  its  advance  to  Richmond 
on  or  about  the  first  day  of  May  1864,  first  engaging  Lee 
in  the  great  and  terrible  battle  of  the  Wilderness.  The 
next  engagement  was  that  of  Spottsylvania  Court  House 
followed  by  the  attack  on  Cold  Harbor,  thence  fighting 
across  the  Chickahominy  swamps,  and  after  successful 
flanking  movements,  Gen.  Grant  reached  the  James  River 
at  City  Point  with  the  larger  portion  of  his  army,  thus 
compelling  Gen.  Lee  and  his  army  to  occupy  their  formida- 
ble and  impregnable  fortifications  in  and  around  Richmond 
and  Petersburg.  A  large  portion  of  Grant's  army  crossed 
the  James  River  at  the  aforesaid  point  with  a  view  to  get- 
ting around  Petersburg  and  cut  all  railroad  and  other  com- 
munications to  the  south  and  southwest  of  that  city,  and 
finally  place  the  two  cities  in  a  state  of  siege  and  force 
Gen.  Lee  and  his  army  to  surrender.  This  stragetic  move- 
ment was  successful  and  Lee's  army  under  cover  of  night 
evacuated  these  two  cities  in  the  early  part  of  April,  1865. 

34 


The  blockade  of  the  Southern  ports  had  proven  effective, 
and  the  vast  destruction  of  foodstuffs  and  forage  all  over 
the  South,  and  the  continued  depletion  of  Lee's  armies  by 
desertion,  and  other  ravages  of  war,  it  was  clearly  seen 
that  the  Confederacy  was  doomed  to  die.  Np  one  felt  this 
more  keenly  than  did  Gen.  Lee,  and  seeing  that  further  ef- 
fusion of  blood  was  useless,  surrendered  the  Army  of  Nor- 
thern Virginia  to  Gen.  Grant  on  the  ninth  of  April  1865,  at 
Appomattox.  This  surrender  was  perhaps  the  most  re- 
markable and  peculiar  one.  in  all  its  details  that  ever  took 
place  in  this  or  any  other  country.  I  take  it  that  the  terms 
of  this  surrender  are  still  remembered  by  many  of  our  old- 
er people.  The  terms  and  conditions  of  the  same  were  that 
the  private  soldiers  were  to  stack  their  arms,  but  would  be 
allowed  to  retain  their  horses,  camp  equipments,  and  pri- 
vate property,  and  the  officers  were  to  retain  their  side- 
arms.  The  paroles  were  made  out  in  duplicate  and  officers 
were  assigned  from  each  army  to  take  charge  of  them. 

The  two  Generals  talked  freely  together  about  their 
experiences  in  the  Mexican  War.  As  a  formality  of  sur- 
render, Lee  did  not  tender  his  sword  to  Grant,  and  neither 
did  Grant  ask  for  it.  Ely  S.  Parker,  Grant's  private  secre- 
tarv,  wrote  the  conditions  of  surrender  as  dictated.  He 
was  a  faithful  friend  of  Grant,  and  for  some  time  he  was 
Chief  of  the  Seneca  tribe  of  Indians  in  New  York  State,  but 
was  a  resident  of  Galena,  111.,  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war. 

Gen.  Lee  then  called  Gen.  Grant's  attention  to  the  fact 
that  his  army  had  been  subsisting  on  parched  corn  exclu- 
sively for  many  days,  and  graciously  asked  Grant  if  he 
would  issue  rations  to  his  starving  men.  Grant  responded 
cheerfully  and  asked  Lee  how  many  rations  he  desired. 
He  replied  about  25,000.     The  supply  trains  were  then  pull- 

35 


ed  up  as  near  the  scene  as  possible  and  the  rations  distri- 
buted. 

When  the  news  of  the  surrender  reached  Grant's  lines 
his  troops  began  firing  a  salute  of  100  guns  in  honor  of  the 
victory.  Gen.  Grant  at  once  sent  orders  to  have  it  stopped. 
He  said  that  Lee  was  a  brave  man  and  led  a  brave  army  and 
now  that  the  Confederates  were  our  prisoners  we  did  not 
want  to  exult  over  their  downfall.  There  is  nothing  equai 
to  the  magnanimity  shown  by  Gen.  Grant  in  that  surrender 
and  his  acts  in  -extending  mercy  to  a  fallen  foe  showed  the 
largeness  and  purity  of  his  heart  and  these  accredited  to 
him  a  greater  victory  than  he  ever  achieved  on  the  field  of 
battle.  Grant  and  Lee  had  the  warmest  personal  regards 
for  each  other  and  each  had  more  than  once  complimented 
the  other  for  efficiency,  strategy,  and  praiseworthy  gener- 
alship in  the  great  conflicts  of  the  war.  Gen.  Lee  had  been 
present  and  commanded  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia 
and  other  troops  in  above  astonishing  victories  which  he 
had  won  as  above  mentioned. 

As  we  all  remember,  Atlanta  had  surrendered  to  the 
Union  army  under  Sherman  and  that  General,  early  in  Jan- 
uary, 1865,  commenced  his  daring  and  famous  march  to  the 
sea,  traversing  the  entire  state  of  Georgia,  and  reached  Sa- 
vanah,  which  together  with  its  forts  capitulated.  Then  his 
army  marched  across  the  state  of  South  Carolina,  took 
Columbia,  its  capital,  thence  northward  into  North  Caro- 
lina and  at  Goldsboro  in  that  state  received  the  surrender 
of  Gen.  Joseph  E.  Johnston  and  all  the  forces  under  his 
command,  on  the  13  day  of  April,  1865.  All  the  other  Con- 
federate armies  in  the  South  rapidly  dissolved  like  the  melt- 
ing snows  under  the  rays  of  a  meridian  sun.  It  is  laudable 
praise  to  the  Southern  people  that  both  guerrilla  and  legiti- 

36 


mate  warfare  came  speedily  to  an  end  and  the  people  as  a 
rule  in  that  section  gladly  accepted  the  situation.  The  peo- 
ples of  both  the  North  and  South  rejoiced  that  the  war  was 
over,  and  that  the  terrible  struggle  had  passed  into  history. 

Over  a  half  million  lives  had  been  sacrificed  to  say 
nothing  of  those  wounded  and  maimed  for  life.  Many 
millions  of  dollars  of  property  had  been  destroyed. 

Xapoleon,  in  his  palmiest  days  while  shaking  the  foun- 
dations of  the  nations  of  Europe,  had  not  drawn  to  his  aid 
a  Corps  of  Marshals  greater  or  more  effective  than  were 
the  Marshals  grouped  around  General  Lee  in  his  Virginia 
campaigns.  Marshals  Bernadotte,  Berthier,  Brune,  Grou- 
chy, Messena,  Murat,  Ney  and  Soult  were  never  superior 
in  any  battle  to  Lee's  Marshals,  viz  :  Jackson,  Longstreet, 
Ewell,  the  Hills,  Pickett,  Gordon,  Stewart  and  Early.  Gen. 
Lee  in  battle  was  superb,  calm  and  self-possessed,  and  grand 
and  philosophical  in  defeat. 

LEE  AS  A  CITIZEN. 

Lee  as  a  citizen  was  exemplary  and  lawabiding,  ever 
ready  and  faithful  in  the  performance  of  civil  duties.  One 
of  the  first  things  that  he  did  after  the  war  was  over,  was 
to  ascertain  from  the  proper  officials  what  amount  he  ow- 
ed, if  any,  for  taxes,  so  that  he  might  promptly  pay  them, 
notwithstanding  that  his  lands  had  all  been  confiscated  by 
the  U.  S.  Government.  He  was  always  happy  in  doing 
what  he  thought  was  right. 

LEE  IN  HOME  LIFE. 
In  his  home  life  he  was  lovable  and  was  strongly  de- 
voted to  his  wife  and  children.     He  contended  that  a  home 
without  love  and  filial  affection,  and  one  that  is  not  peace- 
able, quiet  and  serene,  was  no  home  at  all.  To  get  the  beauty 


of  happiness  out  of  home  life,  was  his  greatest  ambition. 
His  home  was  an  ideal  one  in  -every  sense  of  the  word,  and 
this  was  characteristic  of  most  all  the  Lee  families  in  Vir- 
ginia. 

LEE  AS  A  CHRISTIAN. 
So  far  as  I  can  ascertain,  he  was  not  a  member  of  any- 
Church  although  he  clung  tenaciously  to  the  teachings  of 
Christ,  and  claimed  that  the  world  had  been  made  better 
by  reason  of  the  fact  that  the  Prince  of  Peace  had  lived  in 
it.  His  fond  mother,  in  his  early  youth,  had  instilled  into 
his  mind  true  religion  and  taught  him  never  to  forget  that 
the  world  was  his  country,  and  to  do  good,  his  religion. 
Some  people  who  knew  him  well  thought  and  believed  that 
he  coincided  with  the  Unitarian  faith. 

LEE  AS  AN  EDUCATOR. 
Within  less  than  four  months  after  the  close  of  the 
war  the  trustees  of  Washington  College,  Va.,  elected  him 
as  its  president  which  position  he  held  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death.  There  were  only  forty  students  in  the  college  when 
he  took  over  its  management.  Lee's  reputation  was  such, 
as  an  educator,  that  this  institution  prospered  wonderfully 
under  his  guidance. 

EULOGIES  BESTOWED  ON  LEE. 
Gen.  Wolsely  of  England  said  of  him :  "He  was  hand- 
some, tall,  well  made,  with  a  graceful  figure  and  a  good 
rider,  his  manners  were  at  once  easy  and  captivating."  He 
also  said,  ''I  saw  him  in  the  autumn  of  1862  when  at  the 
head  of  proud  and  victorious  troops  he  smiled  at  the  notion 
of  defeat  by  any  army  that  could  be  sent  against  him.  I 
desire  to  make  known  to  the  reader  not  only  the  renowned 
soldier  whom  I  believe  to  have  been  the  greatest  of  his  age, 
but  to  give  some  insight  into  the  character  of  one  whom  I 

38 


have  always  considered  the  most  perfect  man  I  ever  met." 

Bradford,  the  historian,  said  of  him :  "I  have  often 
said  since  he  entered  on  his  brilliant  career  that,  although 
we  all  admired  him  for  his  remarkable  beauty  and  attrac- 
tive manners,  I  did  not  see  anything  in  him  that  prepared 
me  for  his  so  far  outstripping  all  his  compeers.  The  idea 
first  presented  itself  to  me  during  one  of  my  visits  to  Ar- 
lington after  my  marriage.  We  were  all  seated  around  the 
table  at  night  and  Robert  was  reading.  I  looked  up  and  my 
eye  fell  upon  his  face  in  perfect  repose,  and  the  thought  at 
once  passed  through  my  mind :  "You  certainly  look  more 
like  a  great  man  than  anyone  I  have  ever  seen.  If  all 
those  who  look  like  great  men  to  their  relatives  attained 
Lee's  greatness,  what  a  great  world  it  would  be." 

"Success  is  the  idol  of  the  world  and  the  world's  idols 
have  been  successful.  Washington,  Lincoln  and  Grant  were 
doubtless  very  great,  but  they  were  successful.  Here  was  a 
man  who  remains  great,  although  he  failed." 

Gen.  Wolsely,  in  speaking  of  his  military  genius,  said : 
"Gen.  Lee  compared  favorably  in  the  roll  of  military  tac- 
tics and  discernment  in  the  art  of  war  with  the  Duke  of 
Marlborough,  Napoleon  and  Gen.  Von  Moltke.  I  have 
met  but  two  men  who  realize  my  ideas  of  what  a  true  hero 
should  be :  My  friend  Charles  Gordon  was  one,  General  Lee 
was  the  other." 

Gen.  Grant  said  of  Lee  "All  the  people  except  a  few 
political  leaders  in  the  South  will  accept  whatever  he  does 
as  right  and  will  be  guided  to  a  great  extent  by  his  example." 

Grant  thought  that  Lee  was  somewhat  austere  and  not 
easily  approached  by  his  subordinates.  It  would  seem  to 
us  that  in  this  Grant  was  mistaken.  It  is  true  he  was  stern 
and  dignified  in  manner  but  he  was  courteous  and  socia- 

39 


ble  with  all  classes  where  the  exercise  of  those  qualities 
were  fitting  and  proper. 

Col.  Swift  said:  ''All  great  soldiers  before  him  inherit- 
ed a  ready-made  army,  but  Lee  made  his  own  army.  None 
of  the  others  probably  encountered  as  dangerous  an  adver- 
sary as  Grant  and  none  of  them  except  Hannibal  and  Na- 
poleon in  the  last  two  years,  were  opposed  to  soldiers  as 
good  as  their  own.  The  odds  of  numbers  were  greater 
against  Lee  in  the  Wilderness  campaign  than  they  were 
against  Napokon  in  the  Waterloo  Campaign." 

Jackson  said  of  Lee:  "He  is  a  phenomenon.  He  is 
the  only  man  I  could  follow  blindfold." 

Gen.  D.  H.  Hill  said:  "He  was  a  Caesar  without  his 
ambition;  a  Frederick  without  his  tyranny;  a  Napoleon 
without  his  selfishness;  and  a  Washington  without  his  re- 
ward." 

Col.  Roosevelt  said :  "As  a  mere  military  man  Wash- 
ington himself  cannot  rank  with  the  wonderful  war-chief 
who  for  four  years  lead  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia." 

Longstreet  said :  "It  was  seldom  that  he  allowed  his 
mind  to  wander  to  the  days  of  his  childhood  and  talk  of 
his  father  and  his  -early  associates  but  when  he  did  he  was 
far  more  charming  than  he  thought." 

A  noted  Northern  writer,  and  a  bitter  opponent  of  the 
South  in  the  war  said :  "Lee  is  worthy  of  all  praise.  As  a 
man,  he  was  fearless  among  men.  As  a  soldier,  he  had  no 
superior  and  no  equal.  In  the  course  of  Nature  my  career 
on  earth  may  soon  terminate.  God  grant  that,  when  the 
day  of  my  death  shall  come,  I  may  look  up  to  Heaven  with 
that  confidence  and  faith  which  the  life  and  character  of 
Robert  E.  Lee  gave  him.  He  died  trusting  in  God  as  a 
good  man,  with  a  good  life,  and  a  pure  conscience." 

40 


LEE'S  PATRIOTIC  UTTERANCES. 

A  Confederate  soldier  told  General  Wise  that  he  had 
taken  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  United  States.  "You  have 
disgraced  the  family,"  said  Wise.  "General  Lee  told  me  to 
do  it."  "Oh,  that  alters  the  case.  Whatever  Gen.  Lee 
says  is  all  right,  I  don't  care  what  it  is."  Lee  is  reported 
to  have  remarked  after  the  war:  "I  have  carefully  searched 
the  military  records  of  both  ancient  and  modern  history, 
and  have  never  found  Grant's  superior  as  a  general." 

One  of  his  university  faculty  had  been  criticizing  the 
Union  general  with  some  harshness.  "Sir,"  said  Lee,  "if 
you  ever  presume  again  to  speak  disrespectfully  of  General 
Grant  in  my  presence,  either  you  or  I  will  sever  his  connec- 
tion with  this  university." 

LEE  SPURNED  NOTORIETY. 
Many  business  positions  of  high  trust  or  dignity  were 
pressed  upon  him.  He  uniformly  declined  them  alleging 
that  his  training  did  not  lie  in  that  direction  and  that  his  age 
rendered  him  incapable  of  performing  such  arduous  labors. 
When  he  was  told  that  no  labors  were  expected  of  him  that 
his  name  was  all  that  would  be  required  and  that  a  large 
salary  would  be  paid  simply  for  the  use  of  that,  he  replied 
that  his  name  was  not  for  sale. 

CONCLUSION. 
In  closing  this  essay  on  Gen.  Lee  I  merely  wish  brief- 
ly to  sum  up  some  of  my  opinions  of  this  great  and  good 
man.  The  opinions  of  men  show  that  he  was  stern  and  de- 
cisive in  the  performance  of  his  duties,  but  neither  stern  nor 
stiff  in  his  greetings  with  his  fellowmen.  He,  however, 
like  Grant,  was  a  man  of  few  words  and  this  may  have  led 
to  the  belief  that  he  was  not  easily  approached.  I  take  it 
that  he  carried  until  the  end  of  his  life  the  regret  that  the 

41 


war  was  not  avoided  and  that  there  had  been  so  much  loss 
of  life  on  account  of  the  slavery  question;  but  he  accepted 
the  results  of  the  war  in  good  faith  and  earnestly  set  to 
work  to  help  build  up  the  New  South  which  has  now  become 
far  greater,  grander  and  more  influential  than  the  Old 
South.  Notwithstanding  the  terrible  consequences  of  the 
war  in  the  loss  of  life,  treasure,  and  the  destruction  of  pro- 
perty, yet,  a  retrospective  view  of  the  situation  convinces 
me,  and  I  verily  believe  thousands  of  others  hold  the  same 
view,  that  all  these  sacrifices,  terrible  as  they  were,  were  far 
better  than  the  continued  prolongation  and  further  exten- 
sion of  slavery. 

1  conclude  from  the  reading  of  history  that  none  of  the 
first  families  of  Virginia  were  superior  to  the  Lee  families 
of  Westmoreland  County;  or  in  the  other  counties  where  the 
Lees  resided.  While  Lee  was  eminently  a  military  man, 
yet  he  seriously  regretted  that  he  had  devoted  his  studies 
and  practices  to  a  military  life.  Historians  say  that  when 
he  heard  that  Stonewall  Jackson  had  fallen  mortally  wound- 
ed that  he  sent  one  of  his  cavalry  officers  to  see  him  before 
he  was  borne  from  the  field  by  his  comrades  and  to  say  to 
him,  ''that  while  he,  Jackson,  had  lost  his  left  arm,  he,  Lee, 
had  lost  his  right."  The  beautifull  eulogy  pronounced  by 
"Light  Horse  Harry,"  the  father  of  Lee,  on  Washington, 
could  with  equal  force  have  been  said  of  Robert  E.  Lee. 
"That  he  was  first  in  war,  first  in  peace,  and  first  in  the 
hearts  of  his  countrymen." 

It  is  with  pleasure  I  place  the  name  of  Robert  E.  Lee 
on  the  roll  of  honor  in  the  hall  of  fame  along  side  those  of 
George  Washington,  Thomas  Jefferson,  Richard  Henry 
Lee,  James  Madison,  James  Monroe,  Patrick  Henry,  John 
Marshall,  the  Randolphs  and  other  noted  Virginians. 

42 


PRINCIPAL  BATTLES  OF  THE  WAR  OF  1812 

By   The   Author 

Read  befoire  the  McLean  County  Historical  Sodiety 

I  feel  impressed  that  most  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States  are  under  the  impression  that  the  Declaration  of 
War  which  led  to  the  conflict  of  1812,  came  from  the  Par- 
liament of  Great  Britian.  But  such  however  is  not  the 
fact.  On  the  19th  day  of  June,  1812,  our  Congress  de- 
clared war  against  Great  Britain,  which  declaration  was 
heartily  supported  by  James  Madison,  then  President  of 
the  United  States.  Vigorous  preparations  were  made  on 
the  part  of  our  Government  for  the  prosecution  of  the  war. 
Twenty-five  thousand  regular  troops  and  50,000  volun- 
teers were  raised  and  100,000  militia  were  called  out  by 
the  several  states.  A  national  loan  of  $11,000,000.  was 
made  and  Henry  Dearborn  of  Massachusetts  was  selected 
as  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  army. 

The  cause  of  the  war  resulted  from  the  indignities  of 
the  British  seamen  upon  our  commerce  and  the  impress- 
ment of  American  seamen  and  the  violation  of  the  rights 
of  neutral  nations.  The  battle  cry  of  our  American  Navy 
was  "Free  Trade  and  Sailor's  Rights."  The  war  was  pre- 
cipitated by  General  William  Hull,  then  Governor  of  the 
Michigan  Territory.  He  had  collected  an  army  of  1500 
men  and  by  toiled  marches  through  forests  and  swamps 
for  over  a  month  reached  the  vicinity  of  Detroit,  having 
lost  all  his  baggage  by  the  onslaughts  of  the  enemy.  Col. 
Miller  of  the  General  Hull  contingent  routed  a  large  force 
of  Indians  under  Tecumseh  a  short  distance  from  Detroit 

43 


about  the  20th  of  July,  1812.  General  Brock  was  then 
in  command  of  the  British  forces  at  Maiden.  The  seige 
of  Detroit  was  begun  by  him  August  16.  The  American 
forces  were  in  good  trim  awaiting  in  their  trenches  the  on- 
coming regulars  of  England.  Historians  say  they  were 
eager  for  the  battle.  But  to  their  great  surprise  when  the 
British  had  advanced  to  within  500  yards  of  the  Fort, 
Gen.  Hull  hoisted  the  white  flag,  and  then  resulted  one  of 
the  most  disgraceful  and  shameful  surrenders  ever  record- 
ed in  this  or  any  other  country.  All  the  forces  under  Hull 
became  prisoners  of  war,  and  all  of  the  Michigan  territory 
was  surrendered  to  the  British.  The  cowardly  and  no 
doubt  treasonable  Hull  was  court  martialed  and  sentenced 
to  be  shot,  but  he  received  a  pardon  at  the  hands  of  the 
President,   several  entreaties  having  been  made   for  him. 

In  this  war  the  principal  number  of  the  engagements 
took  place  on  the  waters  of  our  lakes  and  those  of  the  At- 
lantic Ocean.  The  first  of  these  was  between  our  frigate 
the  Constitution,  and  the  British  Guerriere  off  the  coast 
of  Massachusetts.  After  a  terrible  combat  at  half  pistol 
shot  the  British  vessel  struck  her  colors  and  became  the 
prize  of  the  Americans,  but  on  the  following  morning  she 
became  unmanageable  and  she  was  blown  up  by  them. 
Many  other  sanguinary  engagements  took  place  between 
the  navies  of  the  two  countries  with  varying  successes;  but 
in  the  end  the  advantages  rested  largely  with  the  American 
Navy.  Before  recounting  the  important  battles  upon  land, 
I  desire  to  call  your  attention  to  Commodore  Perry's  vic- 
tory on  Lake  Erie.  This  lake  was  dominated  by  a  British 
squadron  of  six  vessels.  The  task  of  recovering  these 
waters  was  assigned  to  Commodore  Perry.  Commander 
Barclay  a  veteran  from  Europe  was  his  antagonist.     Perry 

44 


as  quickly  as  possible  marshalled  his  fleet  of  eight  ships  and 
on  the  10th  of  September,  the  two  fleets  came  together  at 
Put  In  Bay.  The  attack  was  begun  by  the  American 
Squadron,  the  flagship  Lawrence  leading,  but  in  a  short 
time  she  was  ruined  and  Barclay's  flag  ship  was  almost  a 
total  wreck.  Perry  at  once  got  overboard  into  an  open 
boat,  transferred  his  flag  to  the  Niagara,  bore  down  upon 
the  enemies  line,  discharging  terrible  broadsides  right  and 
left.  In  less  than  fifteen  minutes  the  British  fleet  was  so 
damaged  and  helpless  that  Barclay  gave  up  the  fight  and 
Perry  returned  to  the  hull  of  the  Lawrence  and  there  re- 
ceived the  surrender.  He  then  sent  that  memorable  mes- 
sage to  Gen.  Harrison :  "We  have  met  the  enemv  and  thev 
are  ours."  Again  on  the  24th  day  of  February,  A.  D. 
1813  off  of  the  coast  of  Demerara,  the  sloop  of  war  the 
Hornet  commanded  by  our  Captain  James  Lawrence  at- 
tacked the  British  brig  the  Peacock.  A  most  terrific  bat- 
tle of  fifteen  minutes  ensued,  when  the  Peacock  struck  her 
colors.  Soon  after  this  incident  Captain  Lawrence  took 
command  of  our  beautiful  vessel  the  Chesapeake.  Capt. 
Broke  was  in  command  of  the  British  Shannon,  which 
challenged  the  Chesapeake  to  combat  near  Cape  Ann.  The 
encounter  was  both  brief  and  dreadful,  everv  officer  of  the 
Chesapeake  was  either  killed  or  wounded.  Capt.  Law- 
rence fell  pierced  with  a  musket  ball,  dying  upon  the  deck. 
But  before  his  spirit  took  its  flight  he  gave  his  last  order 
in  a  stentorian  voice,  "don't  give  up  the  ship,"  which  words 
became  immortal,  and  is  now  the  motto  of  every  American 
sailor. 

INDIANS  PARTICIPATE 

Gen.  Harrison  built  Fort  Meigs  on  the  Maumee  River 
and  which  was  soon  after  besieged  by  Gen.  Proctor  and  the 

45 


Indian  Chief  Tecumseh,,  with  2000  British  and  savages, 
but  in  the  meantime  Gen.  Clay  with  1200  Kentuckians 
made  a  forced  march  to  relieve  the  fort.  The  British 
gave  up  the  siege,  the  Indians  having  deserted  in  large  num- 
bers and  retreated  to  Maiden,  but  late  in  July,  1813,  these 
same  generals  again  besieged  the  fort  with  4000  men,  but 
were  unsuccessful  and  Proctor  fled  with  half  his  forces 
and  attacked  Fort  Stephenson  at  lower  Sandusky.  And 
now  comes  the  narration  of  one  of  the  most  brilliant  war 
episodes  of  the  entire  conflict.  This  fort  was  defended  by 
1G0  men  under  Colonel  Croghan,  a  stripling  but  twenty- 
one  years  of  age.  On  the  2nd  day  of  August,  1813,  the 
British  advanced  to  storm  the  fort.  These  troops  were 
crowded  into  the  trenches  and  were  swept  away  by  the 
fusilade  firing  of  our  artillery  and  riflemen  and  per- 
ished almost  to  a  man.  The  repulse  was  complete  and 
sickening.  General  Proctor  then  raised  the  siege  at  Fort 
Meigs  and  retreated  to  Maiden.  The  Indians  were  ever 
present  in  much  of  the  fighting  as  the  British  had  offered 
them  tempting  bounties  for  American  scalps.  In  the  latter 
part  of  August  Fort  Mims,  just  north  of  Mobile,  Alabama, 
was  surprised  by  the  savages,  who  murdered  over  400 
people  and  destroyed  their  property.  The  middle  southern 
states  sprang  to  arms  and  at  once  prepared  for  an  invasion 
of  the  Creek  nation.  The  Tennesseans  under  General  Jack- 
son were  first  to  the  rescue.  General  Coffee,  one  of  his 
generals,  reached  the  Indian  town  of  Tallahatchee,  burned 
everything  to  the  ground  and  left  not  an  Indian  alive.  On 
the  eighth  of  November  a  fierce  battle  was  fought  at  Tal- 
ladega, Alabama,  in  which  the  Indians  were  routed  with 
heavy  loss  and  other  engagements  followed  quickly,  in 
which   the    Indians  were    disastrously    defeated.       By  the 

46 


27th  of  March,  1814,  the  Creek  nation  was  conquered  and 
completely  at  the  feet  of  the  American  forces.  The  battle 
of  Chippewa  was  fought  on  the  5th  day  of  July,  1811,  and 
which  was  easily  won  by  the  American  forces.  On  the  eve- 
ning of  July  25th,  the  hardest  and  most  desperate  engage- 
ment of  the  war  took  place  near  Niagara  Falls  on  the  field 
of  Lundy's  Lane.  Generals  Scott  and  Brown  were  in  com- 
mand of  our  forces,  and  to  Colonel  James  Miller  was  as- 
signed the  duty  of  storming  a  battery  of  the  enemy  located 
on  the  highest  elevation  of  the  battle  field.  The  royal  army 
numbering  5000  was  driven  from  the  field  with  a  loss  of 
over  800.  The  American  loss  was  almost  as  great.  Several 
of  our  generals  were  wounded.  It  might  be  said  that  this 
victory  was  the  turning  point  of  the  war.  Our  troops  were 
again  successful  at  the  investment  of  Fort  Erie  by  the  Brit- 
ish general,  and  on  the  5th  of  November,  1814,  the  Fort  was 
destroyed  by  the  American  forces,  who  recrossed  the  Ni- 
agara River  and  went  into  winter  quarters  at  Black  Rock 
and  Buffalo.  From  this  time  until  near  the  close  of  the 
war,  several  engagements  took  place  both  upon  land  and 
water  with  varying  successes  to  the  opposing  arms.  Some 
of  them  were  of  minor  importance. 

On  the  24th  of  August,  1814.  Bladdensburg,  six  miles 
from  Washington.  D.  C,  was  taken  by  the  British.  The 
President  of  the  United  States  with  his  Cabinet  fled  for 
safety,  our  Capitol  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  invaders  and 
by  them  destroyed  by  fire.  All  our  Public  Buildings,  ex- 
cept the  Patent  Office  were  burned,  including  the  unfinished 
Capitol  and  the  President's  Home,  which  were  left  a  mass 
of  ruins.  The  act  which  resulted  in  the  destruction  of 
Washington  was  one  of  vandalism,  and  of  which  many  of 
the  British  Parliament  were  thoroughly  ashamed  and  dis- 

47 


gusted,  and  a  reflection  of  them  to  this  day  recalls  some  of 
the  dreadful  scenes  of  fire  and  destruction  growing  out  of 
the  present  European  War.  Soon  after  the  Washington 
event  the  British  squadron  bombarded  Fort  McHenry  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  Baltimore,  but  the  Fort  held  out,  was 
uninjured  and  the  British  driven  away.  During  the  spec- 
tacular night  of  this  bombardment  our  countryman  Francis 
S.  Keys,  who  was  held  a  prisoner  on  a  British  ship  in  the 
bay,  composed  the  "Star  Spangled  Banner"  a  song  so  dear 
to  the  hearts  of  all  true  Americans. 

The  Spanish  authorities  in  Florida  sympathized  with  the 
British  cause,  whereupon  General  Jackson  drove  the  British 
out  of  Florida  and  the  American  forces  came  into  complete 
possession  of  the  State.  He  next  repaired  to  New  Orleans 
to  meet  the  invaders  in  the  threatened  assault  of  the  British 
upon  that  city.  Engagements  of  trivial  importance  took  place 
before  the  final  attack  upon  New  Orleans  on  the  8th  of 
January,  1815.  General  Packenham  with  an  army  of 
12000  men  from  Jamaica  led  the  British  troops.  Jackson, 
ever  on  the  akrt,  was  ready  with  his  hastily  constructed 
breastworks  of  cotton  bales  and  sand  bags.  The  British 
troops  marched  on  the  double-quick  through  a  dense  copse 
of  woods  and  out  onto  the  plain  to  beat  back  the  American 
forces. 

The  onslaught  was  fierce  and  determined,  but  Jack- 
son's men  were  secure  from  the  enemy's  fire  and  the  awful 
effect  of  the  Tennessee  and  Kentucky  riflemen  upon  the  vet- 
erans of  England  was  appalling.  Charge  after  charge  of 
their  forces  were  hurled  back;  the  shrieks  of  the  wounded 
being  heard  over  the  din  and  roar  of  the  battle.  General 
Packenham  was  killed,  and  General  Gibbs  was  mortally 
wounded.  The  victory  of  the  Americans  was  complete.  The 

48 


British  lost  700  killed  and  1400  wounded,  while  the  Amer- 
ican loss  was  nominal,  amounting  to  only  eight  killed  and 
thirteen  wounded.  General  Jackson  marched  into  New  Or- 
leans and  was  received  with  unbounded  enthusiasm.  He 
had  just  before  the  battle  proclaimed  martial  law  in  the 
city,  as  traitors  there  were  abundant.  General  Jackson  was 
arrested  and  brought  before  one  of  the  Civil  Courts  and 
fined  fifty  dollars,  and  we  all  remember  that  when  Stephen 
A.  Douglas  was  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  from 
Illinois,  that  he  introduced  a  resolution  asking  for  the  re- 
mission of  the  fine,  which  was  done  by  almost  unanimous 
vote.  General  Packenham's  body  was  preserved  in  a  barrel 
of  whiskey  and  shipped  to  England. 

By  way  of  digression  I  wish  to  say  that  my  grand- 
father, Abraham  Carlock  was  in  that  battle,  being  a  vol- 
unteer soldier  from  Tennessee.  His  comrade  who  stood 
at  his  right,  Thomas  Jones,  was  struck  in  the  center  of  the 
forehead  by  a  spent  ball,  which  knocked  him  down  and  my 
grandfather  in  relating  the  incident,  said  he  verily  believed 
that  Jones  was  killed,  but  in  less  than  ten  minutes  after  he 
fell  he  was  on  his  feet  again,  loading  and  firing  his  gun  with 
quick  rapidity  and  cursing  the  British  at  every  fire. 

One  of  the  singular  coincidences  of  the  war  was  the 
fact  that  the  two  countries  had  concluded  a  treaty  of  peace 
at  Ghent  in  Belgium,  December  24,  1814,  just  fifteen  days 
before  this  battle  was  fought. 

After  so  much  bloodshed  arising  out  of  England's 
wrongs  to  the  United  States,  the  treaty  seemed  in  many  re- 
spects absurd.  The  wrongs  done  to  the  commerce  of  the 
United  States,  the  rights  of  neutral  nations,  were  left  un- 
touched in  the  articles  of  the  treaty,  and  of  the  doctrine  of 
"Free  Trade  and  Sailor's  Rights,"  which  had  been  heralded 

49 


far  and  wide,  no  mention  was  made  whatever.  The  prin- 
cipal articles  of  the  treaty  were  devoted  to  the  settlement 
of  boundary  lines,  and  the  possession  of  some  unimportant 
island  located  in  the  Bay  of  Passamaquaddy.  But  it  was 
surmised  by  many  knowing  diplomats  that  at  the  time  of 
the  treaty  the  British  government  gave  to  the  United  States 
private  assurances  that  the  impresment  of  our  seamen  and 
other  wrongs  complained  of  by  our  people  should  never 
thereafter  occur.  For  the  period  of  nearly  one  hundred 
years,  vessels  bearing  the  United  States  flag  have  been  se- 
cure with  a  very  few  exceptions,  from  the  insults  which 
caused  the  war  of  1812. 

Although  many  of  our  people  were  opposed  to  the  war, 
yet  the  great  majority  of  them  stood  by  President  Madison 
in  its  prosecution.  But  as  a  result  of  the  war  a  debt  of 
$100,000,000  was  fastened  upon  us.  Our  trade  was  para- 
lyzed for  the  want  of  money.  In  the  year  1816  the  United 
States  Bank  was  re-chartered  by  Congress,  business  re- 
vived and  prosperity  again  perched  upon  our  banners,  and 
our  commerce  became  the  pride  of  the  nation,  as  well  as  the 
joy  and  hope  of  all  the  people  in  the  United  States  for 
future  generations. 

In  conclusion  I  might  say  that  we  should  rejoice  that 
the  people  of  this  country  and  those  of  England  are  in  a 
reasonable  state  of  harmony,  as  to  the  navigation  of  the 
seas,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  unimportant  questions 
growing  out  of  the  present  European  war.  Also  recurring 
to  a  few  incidents  growing  out  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion, 
chief  of  which,  were  the  settlement  of  the  well  known  Ala- 
bama Claims  and  the  Mason  and  Sidell  affair,  which  were 
amically  adjusted  by  the  United  States  and  England. 


50 


AN  ESSAY  OX  THE  RISE,  PROGRESS  AND  CUL- 
MINATION OF  THE  ABOLITION  PARTY  IN 
THE  UNITED  STATES  AND  WHAT 
IT  ACCOMPLISHED 

By   The   Author 

Read  before  the  McLean  County  Historical  Society  by  Mary  L.  P.  Evans 

In  about  the  year  182  7,  my  father,  Abraham  W.  Car- 
lock,  emigrated  from  the  State  of  Tennessee  to  Illinois,  to 
get  rid  of  the  evil  influences  of  slavery.  My  grandfather 
Carlock  was  not  a  slave-holder  and  the  free  population  in 
that  part  of  Tennessee,  where  the  family  resided,  were  in 
excess  of  that  of  the  slaves,  yet  the  baneful  effects  of 
slavery  were  felt  on  free  labor,  and  the  non-slave  holding 
element  could  not  compete  with  cheap  slave  labor.  My 
grandfather  on  my  mother's  side  was  a  slave-holder,  but 
emancipated  his  slaves  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil 
War.  The  all  devouring  scythe  of  time  has  swept  away 
nearly  all  the  active  participants  in  the  great  struggle 
against  slavery. 

In  the  year  1856,  the  status  of  political  parties  and 
people  of  crude  political  notions  on  the  slavery  question, 
may  be  classified  as  follows:  (placing  them  in  the  order 
of  their  numerical  strength.) 

1st.  The  Abolitionists  who  favored  gradual  emanci- 
pation and  colonization. 

2nd.  The  outspoken  and  uncompromising  abolition- 
ists who  advocated  the  immediate  freedom  of  all  slaves, 
without  any  compensation  to  their  owners. 

3rd.  Those  abolitionists,  who  were  opposed  to  the 
further  extension  of  slavery  to  any  state  or  territory  of 
the  United  States,  but  advocated  confining  it  within  the 

51 


limits  where  it  then  existed,  and  by  such  course,  doom  its 
ultimate  extinction. 

All  the  opponents  regarded  slavery  as  an  evil  and  op- 
posed to  the  law  of  human  rights  in  the  states  in  which  it 
existed,  and  a  curse  to  the  American  people. 

The  tirade  against  slavery  in  the  United  States,  be- 
gan as  early  as  1790,  but  the  well  defined,  organized  agi- 
tation, against  the  institution,  started  about  the  year  1833. 
There  can  be  no  question  that  nearly  all  the  fathers  of  the 
republic,  including  the  framers  of  the  United  States  Con- 
stitution, were  on  principle  opposed  to  slavery,  and  hoped 
and  believed  it  would  ere  long  become  a  barbaric  relic  of 
the  past.  Certain  maurauders  of  the  seas,  dealing  in  the 
illicit  traffic  of  human  beings,  had  clandestinely  foisted 
upon  a  number  of  people  of  the  colonies,  without  their 
careful  deliberation,  the  start  of  slavery,  and  against  the 
wishes  of  a  large  majority  of  the  people.  The  institution 
steadily  increased,  although  several  of  the  original  thir- 
teen colonies,  including  Massachusetts,  abolished  it.  Those 
opposed  to  it  from  year  to  year,  became  more  and  more 
bitter  and  pronounced,  and  this  resulted  in  the  formation 
of  anti-slavery  societies,  throughout  the  United  States, 
particularly  in  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  and  the  New 
England  States.  Animosities  and  jealousies  between  the 
sections,  were  fast  multiplying.  Fugitive  slave  laws  were 
enacted  and  from  time  to  time,  made  more  effective;  slaves 
were  induced  to  leave  their  masters  and  escape  into  the 
Northern  States,  or  spirited  away  into  Canada,  by  means 
of  the  ironically  termed  "Underground  Railroad  systems." 
Abolition  literature  was  freely  circulated  throughout  the 
United  States  and  Congress  was  petitioned  to  pass  a  law, 
prohibiting  the  use  of  United  States  mails,  for  that  pur- 

52 


pose,  but  the  petition  was  denied.  Northern  governors 
refused  to  grant  extraditions  for  persons  to  answer  indict- 
ments found  against  them,  in  the  South,  for  various  al- 
leged crimes,  including  violations  of  the  fugitive  slave 
laws. 

The  further  importation  of  slaves  had  been  prohibit- 
ed by  Act  of  Congress.  A  goodly  number  of  slave-owners 
in  the  border  states,  cheerfully  freed  their  slaves,  some  of 
whom  were  colonized,  while  others  sold  their  slaves  to  be 
taken  to  the  cotton  states  of  the  south,  and  many  of  these 
owners  became  avowed  abolitionists.  Mob  violence  was 
frequent  in  the  Northern  states;  printing  presses  were  de- 
stroyed, and  their  proprietors  subjected  to  horrible  cruelties 
and  some  were  killed  by  the  mobs,  and  much  aboli- 
tion literature  was  seized  and  burned.  A  few  instances 
may  here  be  noted :  William  Lloyd  Garrison  of  Boston, 
who  had  become  the  acknowledged  leader  of  the  ever 
faithful  and  onward  marching  abolition  party,  was  in  1835 
assaulted  by  a  mob  on  one  of  the  principal  streets  of  that 
city  and  beaten  into  insensibility;  his  printing  press  des- 
troyed and  he  was  hurried  to  a  prison  cell  to  escape  death. 
A  lamentable  fact  connected  with  this  affair  was  that  the 
soldier  guards  of  the  city  joined  the  mobs  in  this  dastardly 
crime.  They  had  been  delegated  to  preserve  order  and 
dispel  rioters.  And,  our  own  fair  state  of  Illinois  came 
in  for  its  full  share  of  such  disgrace  and  notoriety.  On 
the  7th  day  of  November,  1837,  Reverend  Elijah  Lovejoy, 
was  pounced  upon  by  an  infuriated  mob  and  killed  and  his 
press  apparatus  destroyed,  at  Alton,  while  fighting  to  pro- 
tect his  life  and  property.  He  was  a  brother  of  the  late 
Owen  Lovejoy.     A  short  time  previous  to  this  affair,  he 

53 


had  been  driven  out  of  St.  Louis  by  similar  violence.  The 
citizens  of  Alton,  assisted  by  the  State  of  Illinois,  caused 
to  be  erected  to  the  memory  of  Lovejoy,  a  large  granite 
monument,  in  the  central  part  of  the  city;  on  the  8th  day  of 
November,  1897,  it  was  dedicated,  with  imposing  cere- 
monies, the  date  being  sixty  years  after  he  was  murdered. 
A  short  time  ago,  I  gazed  upon  this  fitting  tribute,  and 
here  note  some  of  the  inscriptions  thereon : 

"Whether  on  scafold  high, 

Or  in  the  battle  van, 

The  fittest  place  for  man  to  die, 

Is  where  he  dies  for  man." 

''I  have  sworn  Eternal  opposition  to  slavery,  and  by 
the  blessing  of  God,  I  will  never  turn  back." 

"If  the  laws  of  my  country  fail  to  protect  me,  I  ap- 
peal to  God,  and  with  Him,  I  cheerfully  rest  my  cause.  I 
can  die  at  my  post,  but  I  cannot  desert  it." 

"As  long  as  I  am  an  American  citizen,  and  as  long  as 
American  blood  runs  in  these  veins,  I  shall  hold  myself  at 
liberty  to  speak,  to  write,  to  publish  whatever  I  please  on 
any  subject,  being  amenable  to  the  laws  of  my  Country 
for  the  same." 

The  above  sentiments  appeared  in  the  publications  of 
his  newspaper  shortly  before  his  death. 

The  anti-slavery  societies  rapidly  grew  in  numbers 
and  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  of  the  rebellion,  there 
were  over  thirteen  hundred  of  them  located  in  various 
parts  of  the  United  States.  William  Lloyd  Garrison  was 
born  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  settled  in  Boston,  and 
edited  and  published  from  time  to  time,  a  number  of  per- 
iodicals, his  last  one  being  that  of  "The  Liberator,"  devoted 
principally  to  his  hatred  against  and  persistent  demand  of 

54 


the  abolition  of  slavery.  Soon  after  the  adoption  of  the 
13th  Amendment,  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States, 
the  publication  of  the  "Liberator,"  was  discontinued. 

I  here  quote  some  of  his  utterances : 

''I  denounce  the  Constitution,  as  a  League  with  Hell 
and  a  covenant  with  the  Devil." 

"The  twin  relic  of  barbarism  is  polygamy  and  slavery" 

"We  maintain,  that  no  man  has  the  right  to  enslave 
or  imbrute  his  brother — to  hold  or  acknowledge  him  for 
one  moment  as  a  piece  of  merchandise;  to  brutalize  his 
mind,  by  denying  him  the  means  of  intellectual,  social,  and 
moral  improvement.  The  watchword  of  "The  Liberator" 
was,  'No  Union  with  slave-holders.'  South  Carolina 
shouted  back,  "No  Union  with  free  labor." 

''My  reliance  for  the  deliverance  of  the  oppressed, 
universally,  is  upon  the  nature  of  man,  the  inherent  wrong- 
fulness of  oppression,  the  power  of  truth,  and  the  Omni- 
potence of  God." 

In  speaking  of  the  probable  secession  of  the  southern 
states,  he  said,  ''Let  them  depart  in  peace,  no  obstructions 
should  be  placed  in  their  way."  He,  with  many  other 
abolitionists,  in  such  an  event,  were  opposed  to  the  use 
of  coercion. 

October  29,  183-3,  a  great  advance  was  taken  by  the 
call  of  the  Convention,  for  the  formation  of  the  "Ameri- 
can Anti-Slavery  Society",  and  the  Society  was  organized 
and  the  declaration  of  sentiments,  prepared  by  William 
Lloyd  Garrison,  was  adopted,  some  of  those  above  named 
being  incorporated  therein,  at  Philadelphia. 

Garrison  was  born  December  10,  1805,  at  Newbury 
Port,  Massachusetts.  He  died  in  New  York,  in  his  seven- 
ty-fourth year,  May  24th,  1879,  and  was  buried  in  Boston. 


Wendall  R.  Phillips,  early  became  an  admirer  and 
disciple  of  Garrison,  and  his  denunciations  of  the  United 
States  Constitution  were  perhaps,  more  vehement  and 
drastic  than  those  of  Garrison.  He  said,  "that  when  he 
came  to  study  the  Constitution,  and  more  significantly, 
when  he  analyzed  it,  in  the  light  of  its  consistent  interpre- 
tation, for  the  last  half  century,  he  discovered  that  it  was 
a  covenant  with  death  and  an  agreement  with  hell.  It  le- 
galized slavery  for  twenty  years  from  the  date  of  its  adop- 
tion. There  was  a  clause  which  allowed  their  slave  mas- 
ters to  count  three-fifths  of  their  slaves  on  the  basis  of 
national  representation,  and  a  clause  which  made  a  provi- 
sion for  the  return  of  fugitives  throughout  the  union,  a 
trinity  of  evil,  as  satanic  as  the  orthodox  trinity  was  di- 
vine. These  matters  were  discussed  in  every  anti-slavery 
meeting  and  society.  Early  in  1844,  soon  the  entire  Garri- 
son phalanx  presented  a  united  front.  In  the  platforms  of 
these  bodies,  the  pro-slavery  doctrines  were  dissolved. 
The  anti-slavery  organs  in  Boston  and  New  York  display- 
ed in  bold  head  lines,  the  obnoxious  truth,  ''No  union 
with  slave-holders." 

The  sensation  at  these  meetings  dismantled  defiance. 
The  "Liberty  Party"  so  called,  sprung  up  on  account  of 
dissensions  but  was  really  no  different  from  the  original 
abolitionist  party.  The  Garrison  party  held  to  the  tre- 
mendous position  of  disunion.  He,  in  commenting  on  the 
life  of  a  constituent  said,  "Treason  to  a  pro-slavery  con- 
stitution, and  infidelity  to  a  pro-slavery  religion  is  the  best 
patriotism  and  truest  Christianity." 

Phillips  was  the  greatest  American  agitator,  but  was 
opposed  to  a  resort  to  arms.  He  said,  "Nothing  is  politi- 
cally  right   which   is  morally   wrong."     He   quoted   John 

56 


Wesley  as  saying,  ''Slavery  is  the  sin  of  all  the  universe." 
Both  he  and  Garrison  advocated  the  abolishment  of 
slavery  without  physical  force;  but  their  hostility  against 
that  institution,  and  their  hatred  of  it  was  most  intense  and 
irritating.  Under  the  teachings  and  utterances  of  these 
noted  men,  a  large  disunion  sentiment  developed  through- 
out Nlew  York,  Pa.,  and  the  New  England  States.  Phil- 
lips was  born  November  29,  1811,  in  Boston  Common, 
Massachusetts,  and  died  February  2nd,  1884. 

In  just  about  thirty  years,  being  in  the  year  1865,  af- 
ter he  was  assaulted  in  the  City  of  Boston,  William  Lloyd 
Garrison  spoke  to  a  large  concourse  of  people  in  Charles- 
ton, South  Carolina,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Freedmen's 
Bureau,  the  larger  portion  of  the  audience  being  colored 
people.  He  told  the  people  there,  at  that  time  that  he  was 
a  friend  of  the  South,  but  that  they  had  misunderstood 
him,  and  that  he  ought  to  have  spoken  as  freely  in  South 
Carolina,  in  1835,  as  he  was  then  allowed  to  freely  speak 
his  thoughts  on  that  occasion." 

Both  Garrison  and  Phillips  attracted  to  their  standard, 
a  long  list  of  noted  men,  as  follows :  Lundy,  Leavett,  Knof- 
fer,  Tappen,  Wright,  Whittier,  May,  Shipley,  Quincy, 
Channing,  Beecher,  Parker,  the  Lovejoys,  and  many  other 
prominent  men.  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe  in  her  "Uncle 
Tom's  Cabin"  played  an  important  part  in  moulding  public 
sentiment  against  slavery. 

In  1840,  an  anti-slavery  society  was  organized  in 
Bloomington,  Illinois  and  in  November,  1844.  in  an  at- 
tempt to  hold  a  meeting  in  the  old  frame  school  building, 
located  near  the  Corner  of  Main  and  Olive  streets  on  the 
south  side  of  Olive,  a  disgraceful  and  lawless  act  occured. 
This    was    used    for  an  audience  room  and  likewise  for 

57 


school  purposes.  An  outside  stairway  led  to  this  room, 
which  had  a  seating  capacity  of  about  175.  The  officers 
of  the  society  had  arranged  to  hold  a  meeting  at  that  place 
on  a  Sunday  afternoon.  Fifty-two  Whigs  and  Democrats 
about  equally  divided  in  numbers,  preceded  the  little  band 
of  members  of  the  society.  Bullies  stationed  at  the  top  of 
the  stairway  with  demonstrations  of  clubs  and  pistols,  de- 
fied and  denied  them  admission.  One  Reverend  C.  H. 
Thompson,  with  Bible  under  his  arm,  led  his  followers, 
being  made  up  of  James  Wallace,  Henry  Adams,  George 
Hayes  and  about  a  dozen  others.  A  boisterous  exchange 
of  oaths  and  epithets  ensued,  but  the  anti-slavery  crowd 
yielded,  and  scheduled  a  meeting  to  be  held  at  early  candle- 
light in  the  wagon  and  blacksmith  shop  of  said  Hayes,  lo- 
cated on  the  exact  lot  of  ground  now  owned  and  occupied 
by  our  late  townsman,  Sig  Heldman,  as  a  clothing  store,  on 
the  West  side  of  Main  street.  The  meeting  started  on 
time,  and  in  a  few,  minutes  the  speaker  was  lashing  and 
slashing  the  slave  oligarchy  with  great  vigor.  The  Whig 
and  Democratic  crowd  pelted  the  building  with  eggs,  but 
they  were  genuine  fresh  eggs  and  worth  only  five  cents  a 
dozen.  The  meeting,  however,  was  not  broken  up  and  the 
speaker  held  his  audience  well  in  hand,  without  a  break  un- 
til near  midnight.  So  far  as  I  can  ascertain,  the  only  per- 
son now  living,  who  attended  that  meeting  was  the  widow 
of  the  late  Captain  Wilm-eth,  now  living  in  Kansas.  She 
lately  described  to  me  her  recollections  of  that  wild  night. 
She  was  then  about  eight  years  of  age  and  told  me  how  she 
cringed  and  held  on  to  her  mother's  apron.  Since  the  above 
was  written  Mrs.  Wilmeth  has  passed  away. 

The  late  James   P.   Hodge,   was  also  present  at  the 
meeting,  and  to  him  I  am  indebted  for  an  accurate  account 

58 


of  this  shameful  affair.  The  late  James  S.  Ewing,  in 
talking  about  the  incident,  said  to  me :  "I  very  much  re- 
gret that  this  outrage  should  have  occurred ;  it  was  an  act 
which  trampled  upon  the  rights  of  free  speech,  and  in  no 
wise  hurt  the  cause  of  the  abolitionists,  but  it  put  a  black 
spot  upon  our  town,  which  was  made  up  of  many  good 
law-abiding  citizens."  Mr.  Ewing  was  not  present  at  that 
meeting,  and  was  then  about  ten  years  of  age,  while  Mr. 
Hodge  was  eleven  or  twelve  years  of  age. 

At  this  juncture,  I  will  revert  to  the  fight  against 
slavery  by  political  parties.  James  C.  Birney  of  New 
York,  was  twice  nominated  for  the  Presidency  by  the  Li- 
berty or  Abolition  party,  first  in  1840,  against  Harrison, 
Whig  and  VanBuren,  Democrat,  and  again  in  1844,  against 
Polk,  a  thorough  going  upholder  of  slavery  and  Clay,  the 
man  of  compromise.  He  succeeded  in  polling  just  enough 
votes  to  defeat  Clay  and  throw  the  Government  directly 
into  the  hands  of  the  slave  oligarchy.  Birney  was  original- 
ly a  slave  holder  of  Kentucky,  and  emancipated  his  slaves. 

In  the  campaign  of  1840,  Birney  received  a  total  vote 
of  7,059 ;  the  Whig  candidate,  William  H.  Harrison,  re- 
ceived 1,275,000  votes.  In  the  campaign  of  1844,  Birney 
received  a  total  vote  of  62,300.  The  free-soil  party  met 
at  Buffalo,  New  York,  August  0,  1847  and  nominated 
Martin  VanBuren  of  New  York  for  President.  The  old 
so-called  "Liberty  Party"  joined  the  ''Free  Soilers,"  as  al- 
so did  many  of  the  Democrats,  who  were  opposed  to  slav- 
ery. VanBuren  received  of  the  popular  vote,  291, 2G3. 
The  Free  Soil  Democrat  Convention,  again  assembled  at 
Pittsburg,  August  1,  1852.  John  P.  Hale,  of  New  Hamp- 
shire was  nominated  for  President,  and  George  W.  Julian 
of  Indiana  for  vice-president. 

59 


General  Winfield  Scott,  became  candidate  for  Whig 
party  and  Franklin  Pierce  of  New  Hampshire  for  that  of 
the  Democratic  party.  As  it  will  be  remembered,  Pierce 
was  elected  by  a  very  large  majority,  by  both  a  popular  and 
electoral  vote. 

In  1848,  Zachary  Taylor  became  the  standard  bearer 
of  the  Whig  party,  and  Millard  Fillmore  was  nominated 
for  vice-president.  The  leader  of  the  Democratic  party 
in  that  campaign  was  Lewis  Cass  of  Michigan.  Taylor 
was  elected  and  died  soon  after  his  inauguration,  and  Fill- 
more filled  out  his  unexpired  term. 

Up  to  this  time,  both  the  old  parties,  Whig  and  Demo- 
cratic, had  adopted  a  conciliatory  course  regarding  the  slav- 
ery question,  and  held  in  their  platforms,  to  the  policy  of 
non-interference  and  non-agitation  of  the  slavery  question. 
Opinion  was  rapidly  moulding  against  this  institution. 
Events  were  occurring,  which  tended  to  excite  the  people 
of  the  North  and  South  to  animosity.  Clouds  were  gath- 
ering for  the  storm  and  the  atmosphere  was  filled  with 
omens  of  an  on-slaught  on  the  inhuman  institution  of  slav- 
ery, and  especially  to  stop  its  further  spread.  People  were 
taking  sides  on  the  burning  question  and  a  few  were  seem- 
ingly for  pacification.  As  early  as  1840,  John  C.  Calhoun 
enunciated  his  startling  position  substantially  as  follows : 
Feb.  19,  1847,  he  offered  in  the  Senate,  supported  by  a 
speech,  resolutions  declaring  that  slavery  was  national, 
freedom  sectional ;  that  the  Constitution  authorized  the 
protection  of  slavery  in  all  the  national  domain  and  that 
neither  Congress  nor  any  territorial  Legislature  could  le- 
gally prevent  a  citizen  of  a  slave  state  from  emigrating  with 
his  slaves  to  any  territory  and  there  holding  them  in  servi- 
tude. 

60 


He,  together  with  the  clergy  of  the  South  and  many 
of  the  North  argued,  that  slavery  was  right,  and  was  clear- 
ly sanctioned  by  the  Bible.  Both  the  old  parties  appeared 
to  be  in  the  hands  of  the  slave  oligarchy,  and  one  of  these 
was  doomed  to  death.  It  fell  upon  the  Whig  party  to  suf- 
fer dissolution  for  the  reason  that  between  the  years  1853 
and  1856,  it  was  out  of  power,  and  because  of  its  attitude 
on  the  slavery  question  its  representatives,  concurring  in 
the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Act,  went  down,  nev- 
er to  rise  again. 

The  Republican  party  arose  from  its  ruins, — tens  of 
thousands  of  Northern  Democrats  joined  the  Republican 
standard,  while  the  greater  proportion  of  the  Southern 
Whigs  cast  their  lot  with  the  pro-slavery  power.  The  Na- 
tional Democratic  party  was  invulnerable  and  enduring, 
because  it  had  existed  since  the  adoption  of  our  Federal 
Constitution,  or  at  least  from  the  date  of  the  formation  of 
the  Democratic  party  by  Thomas  Jefferson.  The  Repub- 
lican party  came  into  existence  on  the  29th  of  May,  1856, 
in  our  City  of  Bloomington,  as  is  claimed.  This  claim, 
however,  has  been  disputed,  and  the  credit  of  its  formation 
given  to  other  points. 

Thorton  K.  Lothrop,  in  his  life  sketch  of  William  H. 
Seward,  says  that  a  preliminary  convention  on  the  22nd 
day  of  February,  1856  at  Philadelphia,  announced  the  or- 
ganization of  the  Republicans  as  a  National  party.  Ohio 
also  lays  claim  to  this  distinction.  The  fight  was  now  on 
and  the  prophetic  mind  could  see  that  slavery  was  doomed. 
To  the  third  system  of  abolitionism  early  outlined  in  this 
article,  belonged  the  Republican  party. 

James  Buchanan,  in  the  campaign  of  1856,  was  the 
chosen  leader  of  the  Democratic  forces.     John  C.  Fremont 

61 


of  California  was  the  leader'  of  the'  Republican  Hosts. 
Millard  Fillmore  was  the  nominee  of  the  so-called  "Ameri- 
can Party,"  really  the  "Pacification  Party."  Buchanan  was 
elected,  having  received  the  combined  electoral  vote  of  the 
solid  south  except  Maryland,  and  also  carried  five  northern 
states.  Fremont  received  in  New  York  a  plurality  of  80,000 
and  his  majority  over  Fillmore  in  that  state  was  greater  than 
the  latters  entire  vote  therein.  The  slogan  cry  of  the  Re- 
publicans in  that  campaign  was  "Fremont,  free  speech, 
free  press,  free  soil  and  free  men."  The  Free  Soilers  adop- 
ted the  declaration  in  all  their  platforms,  that  slavery 
was  a  sin  against  God,  and  a  crime  against  man,  and  de- 
nouncing the  compromise  of  1850  and  the  two  parties  that 
supported  it. 

We  pause  here  to  take  up  and  renew  the  Legislative 
controversy  on  the  slavery  question.  In  the  year  1820, 
during  James  Monroe's  administration  occurred  one  of  the 
most  memorable  and  exciting  discussions  on  the  slavery 
question  that  ever  took  place  on  the  American  continent. 
The  North  and  South  were  arrayed  against  each  other  on 
this  subject.  Some  of  the  southern  states  were  threaten- 
ing disunion  by  acts  of  secession.  The  discussion  arose  by 
reason  of  the  territory  of  Missouri  applying  for  admission 
into  the  union.  Some  of  the  most  learned  statesmen  of 
both  sections  took  part  in  the  debate.  An  amicable  settle- 
ment was  concluded  and  the  Missouri  Compromise  Act 
passed  by  Congress,  which  was  to  the  effect  that  thereafter 
slavery  should  not  extend  north  of  36  degrees  and  30  rhin. 
north  latitude.  Missouri  was  admitted  into  the  Union, 
March  22,  1821,  under  this  act,  known  as  the  Missouri 
Compromise.  This  compromise  remained  intact  for  about 
thirty  years  and  the  compromise  of  1850  disannulled  it. 

62 


This  was  the  work  of  both  Whigs  and  Democrats,  the  north 
and  south.  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  United  States  Senator 
from  Illinois  introduced  into  the  United  States  Senate,  his 
so-called  substitute  bill,  known  as  "The  Kansas-Nebras- 
ka Bill."  It  embraced  his  pet  scheme  of  popular  sover- 
eignty. 

Immediately  after  the  clash  of  1820  was  over,  Presi- 
dent Monroe  assembled  his  Cabinet  and  requested  each 
member  to  sign  a  paper  concurring  in  the  enactment  of  the 
Missouri  Compromise  line, — which  they  did.  John  C. 
Calhoun  was  then  Secretary  of  War.  Shortly  before  his 
death,  he  repudiated  his  action  in  that  matter  and  stated  as 
an  excuse  for  so  doing,  that  conditions  had  arisen,  prov- 
ing, that  slavery  could  not  be  confined  within  such  narrow 
limits.  Yet  Calhoun  was  a  man  of  great  intellectual  and 
magnetic  force,  and  had  a  wonderful  influence  over  the 
people  of  South  Carolina  and  the  other  cotton  states.  He 
was  born  March  18,  1782  in  Abbeville  District,  South 
Carolina,  and  died  March  31,  1850,  in  Washington,  D.  C. 

The  pro-slavery  representatives  had  hoped  by  their  ne- 
farious acts,  to  make  California  a  slave  state,  but  on  the 
9th  day  of  September  1850,  she  came  into  the  Union  with 
an  anti-slavery  Constitution.  Thousands  of  Whigs  and 
Democrats  voted  for  Buchanan,  with  the  belief  that  he 
would  administer  the  affairs  of  the  nation  with  impartiali- 
ty, and  that  he  would  see  to  it,  that  troubles  in  Kansas 
would  be  settled  without  bloodshed.  His  first  act  in  the 
Controversy  there,  was  to  attempt  to  force  on  the  people  of 
Kansas,  ''The  Lecompton  Constitution,"  which  was  a  pro- 
slavery  document.  A  vote  was  taken  on  the  same,  which 
resulted  in  a  majority  for  it,  but,  owing  to  irregularities 
in  the  preparation  for  this  vote,  and  gross  frauds  in  casting 

63 


the  vote,  the  election  was  set  aside.  The  Free  Soilers  gen- 
erally refused  to  vote.  Other  votes  on  the  admission  of 
Kansas  were  taken,  and  Buchanan  threatened  to  break  up 
the  Legislature  at  Topeka,  with  Federal  troops.  A  reign 
of  terror  was  now  on.  Border  ruffianism  was  rampant; 
thousands  came  from  the  Eastern  states,  pistols  in  belt, 
and  a  Bible  in  one  hand  and  a  bowie-knife  in  the  other,  to 
fight  to  the  death,  against  the  enslavement  of  Kansas. 
Many  were  killed  on  slight  provocation,  and  hence  the  term 
"Bleeding  Kansas,"  was  applied.  The  State  having  pass- 
ed through  the  fire,  and  the  valley  of  death,  was  finally  ad- 
mitted into  the  Union,  January  29,  1861,  as  a  free  state 
under  the  "Wyandotte  Constitution." 

We  turn  now,  to  the  consideration  of  one  of  the  most 
startling  decisions  that  was  ever  handed  down  by  a  Court 
of  this  or  any  other  country.  It  is  known  in  the  Supreme 
Court  Reports,  of  the  United  States,  as  the  Dred  Scott 
case.  Dred  Scott  was  a  negro  slave  descended  from  slave 
parents,  and  residing  in  Missouri.  In  1834,  he  was  taken 
by  his  master  to  a  military  post  at  Rock  Island,  Illinois, 
where  in  1835,  he  was  married  to  a  negress  slave  owned  by 
a  Major  of  the  United  States  army.  They  then  removed 
with  their  master  to  Fort  Snelling,  Minnesota,  and  after- 
wards returned  to  Missouri.  The  master  also  bought  the 
negress.  Involuntary  servitude  was  prohibited,  in  all  the 
above  territory  by  the  Missouri  Compromise  of  1820  and 
the  Ordinance  of  1787,  and  the  Treaty  under  the  Louisi- 
ana Purchase.  The  master  several  years  later,  sold  these 
slaves  to  a  gentleman  of  New!  'York  City.  Scott  soon  af- 
ter brought  suit  for  his  freedom  on  the  above  state  of  facts 
which  involved  his  whole  family.  The  Circuit  Court  of 
St.  Louis  rendered  judgment  in  favor  of  Scott,  which  was 


64 


reversed  on  writ  of  error  by  judgment  of  the   Supreme 
Court  of  Missouri,  from  which  an  appeal  was  taken,  to  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  which  affirmed  the 
position  of  the  higher  Court  of  Missouri.     Chief  Justice 
Taney  rendered  the  decision  of  the  Court,  which  was  to 
the  effect  that  Scott  was  not  a  citizen,  but  a  mere  chattel, 
a  thing  that  the  owner  could  take  with  him,  the  same  as  a 
horse,  or  any  other  chattel  property,  to  any  state  or  terri- 
tory, and  still  hold  him  as  a  slave.     For  political  reasons, 
the  decision  was  not  handed  down  until  two  days  after 
Buchanans'  inauguration.  A  majority  of  the  Court  agreed 
with  Chief  Justice  Taney,  in  his  opinion,  but  two  of  them 
gave  dissenting  opinions  which  were  in  their  reasoning  and 
conclusion,    directly   opposite   to   those   of   Justice   Taney. 
In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  slavery  question  was  fast  be- 
coming the  all  absorbing  one,  before  the  American  people, 
the  decision  of  the  Dred  Scott  case  created  great  excite- 
ment throughout  the  Northern  States. 

But  other  things  were  influencing  the  public  mind,  and 
hastening  the  event  of  the  clash  of  arms,  and  the  final  end 
of  slavery. 

In  the  year  1857,  Hinton  R.  Helper,  of  North  Caro- 
ina  completed  his  book,  entitled,  "The  Impending  Crisis," 
and  the  same  was  entered  by  Act  of  Congress  in  that  year 
and  its  full  publication  was  made  in  New  York  City,  early 
in  1860.  This  work  was  also  known  by  the  name  of  the 
"Irrespressible  Conflict,"  and  was  a  terrific  attack  upon 
the  institution  of  slavery  in  the  South.  No  argument  has 
ever  been  written,  so  convincing,  far  reaching  and  effec- 
tive as  that  by  him,  against  slavery.  His  arguments  were 
unanswerable  and  his  hatred  of  slavery  most  intense. 

His  argument  was  based  principally  on  the  compara- 


65 


tive  wealth  of  the  Northern  and  Southern  states.  He 
showed  and  proved  by  statistics  how  the  North  had  out- 
stripped the  South  in  the  race  for  progress  and  prosperity, 
in  about  everything  that  goes  to  make  up  a  good  and  at- 
tractive country.  That  in  these  two  sections,  most  articles 
for  the  benefit  of  humanity  from  a  toothpick  to  a  steam- 
engine  were  manufactured  in  the  North;  that  lands  of 
equal  fertility  were  worth  from  four  to  five  times  per  acre 
more  in  the  North  than  in  the  South;  that  the  educational 
institutions  of  the  North  were  far  in  advance  of  those  in 
the  South,  and  how  young  men  and  women  of  that  section, 
desiring  higher  education  had  to  seek  our  colleges  and  uni- 
versities for  superior  advantages.  He  further  showed  by 
statistics  that  the  amalgamation  or  mixing  of  the  races  was 
five  times  greater  under  the  conditions  of  slavery  than  un- 
der conditions  of  freedom  in  the  Northern  states,  in  pro- 
portion to  the  same  amount  of  population.  He  defied  the 
slave  oligarchy  and  not  only  requested  but  demanded 
the  immediate  emancipation  of  their  slaves  without  any 
compensation  to  the  owner.  He  predicted  the  southern 
states  would  secede  from  the  Union,  but  would  come  back 
into  the  fold,  stripped  of  this  peculiar  and  damnable  insti- 
tution. He  gave  a  long  list  of  the  early  patriot  fathers  of 
the  northern  and  southern  states  and  quoted  from  them 
what  they  said  regarding  slavery,  namely,  The  Jeffersons. 
Madisons,  Randolphs,  and  Pinckneys  for  the  South,  John 
Adams,  Alexander  Hamilton,  the  Quincys,  and  a  long  list 
of  others  of  the  North. 

Also  quoted  to  the  same  effect  from  some  of  the  great- 
est men  of  England,  France,  Germany  and  other  European 
Countries. 

He  said,  "We  are  determined  to  abolish  slavery  at  all 

66 


hazards — in  defiance  of  all  the  opposition  of  whatever  na- 
ture possible  for  the  slavocrats  to  bring  against  it;  of  this 
they  may  take  due  notice  and  govern  themselves  according- 
ly." He  further  said  the  Republican  party  was  organized 
to  give  the  death  blow  to  slavery.  He  was  born  near 
Mocksville,  North  Carolina,  December  27,  1829  and  he 
died  in  1909. 

YVe  pause  to  make  brief  mention  of  the  Senatorial 
campaign  of  1858  between  Lincoln  and  Douglas.  Their  joint 
debate  was  of  no  especial  importance  or  enlightment  to  the 
people,  but  as  a  result,  tended  to  fortify  the  Republican 
party  and  make  its  success  more  certain  for  the  great  bat- 
tle of  1S60. 

Many  Democrats  regretted  that  Douglas  stood  with 
Calhoun,  Stephens,  and  other  Southern  leaders,  in  the  non- 
sensical and  begging  idea  that  the  clause  in  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  which  says :  ''that  all  men  are  created 
equal,  etc."  had  no  reference  to  the  negro  race,  free  or 
slave.  There  were,  at  that  time,  hundreds  of  free  negro 
citizens  in  the  eastern  states  and  some  in  North  Carolina, 
who  by  law,  were  entitled  to  vote,  and  endowed  with  the 
same  rights  as  white  men.  but  the  southern  idea  was.  that 
the  two  races  were  not  equal  in  any  sense  and  stood  pledg- 
ed against  the  Doctrine  of  the  natural  rights  of  man,  and 
advocated  that  the  superior  race  had  the  right  to  rule  over 
and  subjugate  the  inferior  race.  But  the  slave  holders 
contention  was  ridiculous  and  this  pet  notion  of  theirs  was 
shot  to  death  in  the  "Civil  War."  But  Douglas  was  a 
patriot  and  stood  manfully  by  Lincoln  in  the  vigorous 
prosecution  of  the  war.  On  August  27th.  1858,  in  their 
debate  at  Freeport,  Illinois,  Douglas  said,  "I  shall,  under 
no  circumstances  consent  to  a  dissolution  of  this  Union," 

67 


and  Lincoln  quoted  from  his  Springfield  speech,  in  which 
he  said  in  effect,  "A  house  divided  against  its-elf  cannot 
stand.  I  do  not  believe  this  Government  can  permanently 
endure  half  slave  and  half  free.  I  do  not  say  the  Union 
will  be  dissolved,  but  I  do  say  it  will  cease  to  be  divided. 
Either  the  advocates  of  slavery  will  push  it  forward,  until 
it  shall  become  alike  lawful  in  every  state  and  territory  of 
this  Union,  or  else  its  opponents  will  confine  it  where  it 
now  exists  and  thus  place  it  in  the  ultimate  course  of  ex- 
tinction." 

My  hearers  will  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  all  ele- 
ments and  combinations  of  opposition  against  slavery  were 
merged  into  the  Republican  party  at  its  formation  in  1856, 
and  after  the  year  1853,  nothing  further  was  heard  of 
either  the  "Abolition,  Liberty  or  Free  Soil  Parties."  All 
these  had  confidence  that  the  Republican  party  would  ef- 
fectually dispose  of  that  question. 

The  Republican  platforms  of  1856  and  1860  were 
substantially  the  same,  on  this  question.  They  declared  in 
no  uncertain  language,  against  the  institution  of  servitude, 
and  that  the  further  extension  of  slavery  should  be  stopp- 
ed, and  that  Congress  had  the  power  to  prohibit  it  in  the 
territories.  The  Kansas  fight  was  still  on  and  the  out- 
come uncertain.  In  the  campaign  of  1860,  Lincoln  was 
made  the  standard-bearer  of  the  Republican  party  and 
Douglas  for  the  Northern  Democrats,  and  Breckenridge 
at  Baltimore,  was  nominated  to  lead  the  Southern  Demo- 
crats. The  great  Democratic  party  had  been  rent  in  twain 
at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  and  the  thought  of  placing 
Douglas  in  the  Presidential  chair  was  reduced  to  a  mini- 
mum. Bell  of  Tennessee  became  the  chosen  leader  of  the 
so-called  "Union  Party,"  which  was  made  up  in  most  part 

68 


of  *'  old  line  Whigs,"  and  was  really  the  party  of  concilia- 
tion. The  southern  democrats  would  not  support  Doug- 
las because  he  would  not  take  up  the  banner  for  slavery. 
Thousands  of  democrats  were  hostile  to  him  because  he 
aided  in  breaking  down  the  Missouri  Compromise  line, 
which  had  been  held  sacred  by  all  parties  for  thirty  years, 
and  attempted  to  set  up  in  lieu  thereof,  his  favorite  scheme 
of  "Popular  Sovereignity."  Lincoln  was  elected  and  in- 
auguarated  President,  and  the  excitement  now  was  at  fev- 
er heat.  It  became  apparent  that  some  of  the  southern 
states  would  try  to  disrupt  the  Union,  and  eleven  of  them 
passed  ordinances  of  secession.  A  Confederate  Govern- 
ment was  set  up,  founded  on  the  oligarchical  rock  of  slav- 
ery. In  the  passing  of  the  Union  soldiers  to  the  scenes  of 
conflict,  riotous  demonstrations  took  place,  and  many  in- 
nocent people  were  killed,  aside  from  the  combatants. 
For  the  purpose  of  this  essay,  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  go 
into  the  details  of  the  great  struggle.  Suffice  to  say,  slav- 
ery went  down  and  the  Union  was  preserved. 

After  the  invasion  of  Maryland  by  the  Confederates 
in  1862,  much  uneasiness  was  felt  in  the  North,  and  that 
more  drastic  measures  should  be  taken  by  our  Government 
against  the  seceding  states,  and  after  their  army  had  been 
driven  out  of  Maryland,  Lincoln  determined  to  issue  his 
Emancipation  Proclamation,  September  22,  1862  which 
by  its  terms  was  to  the  effect,  that  on  January  1,  1863,  the 
slaves  should  be  freed  and  called  his  cabinet  together  and 
read  it  to  them,  assuring  them  that  no  change  in  his  mind 
might  be  made,  as  he  had  fully  outlined  his  course.  The 
proclamation  was  to  the  effect  that  in  all  states,  or  parts 
of  states  in  rebellion  against  the  Government  of  the  Unit- 
ed States,  the  slaves  of  such  should,  on  that  date  be  for- 

69 


ever  free.  The  Document  was  issued  as  a  war  measure, 
yet  it  seemed  doubtful  in  the  light  of  subsequent  events, 
that  the  paper  had  such  effect  as  a  war  measure.  Neither 
the  morale,  nor  the  rank  and  file  of  the  rebel  army  seemed 

to  be  shaken.  The  bloodiest  and  most  terrific  battles  of 
the  war  were  fought  after  the  1st  of  January,  18G3,  namely 
that  of  Gettysburg,  on  July  1,  2,  and  3,  18G3,  and  the  sur- 
render of  Vicksburg  to  Gen.  Grant,  July  4,  18G3,  also  that 
of  Cliickamauga  fought  on  the  19,  20,  21  days  of  Septem- 
ber 18G3,  and  these  dreadful  struggles  were  the  turning 
points  of  the  war.  It  became  evident  that  the  South  was 
in  the  fight  to  the  finish ;  they  were  insisting  on  the  right 
to  withdraw  from  the  Union,  regardless  of  the  slavery  is- 
sue, and  had  set  up  the  Doctrine  of  "States  Rights,"  pro- 
mulgated by  Calhoun  and  others  of  South  Carolina,  and 
which  state  in  1831,  Governor  Hayne  threatened  to  take  out 
of  the  Union.  The  grievances  of  the  people  of  that  state 
were  the  Acts  of  Congress  on  the  Tariffs  of  1828  and 
1832 ;  they  claimed  that  they  were  oppressive  and  violated 
the  Federal  Constitution,  and  by  the  Nullification  Act  of 
that  state,  resisted  the  collection  of  the  revenue  under  those 
acts.  President  Jackson  very  effectually  squelched  the 
nullification  by  his  proposal  to  use  force  of  the  army,  and 
Calhoun  and  Hayne  were  reminded  that  they  might  play 
an  important  part  in  a  hanging  bee  for  their  treasonable 
acts.  The  grievances  of  the  people  on  the  Tariff  question 
of  South  Carolina  were  evidently  just  and  the  Tariff  mea- 
sures were  in  consequence,  modified,  but  the  Acts  of  Nulli- 
fication were  uncalled  for  and  Jackson  did  the  right  thing 
at  the  right  time  to  quell  them.  The  abolitionists  reques- 
ted the  President  to  free  the  slaves,  Union  or  disunion, 
and  became  persistent  as  the  war  progressed,  but  Lincoln 

70 


was  cautious  as  there  was  a  large  sentiment  among  the 
parties  of  the  North,  who  were  opposed  to  the  liberating 
of  the  negroes. 

And  he  did  not  intend  to  let  the  ship  of  state  go  down, 
and  he  said,  "my  paramount  object  in  this  struggle  is  to 
save  the  Union,  and  it  is  not  either  to  save  or  destroy  slav- 
ery. If  I  could  save  the  Union  without  freeing  any  slaves 
I  would  do  it;  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  all  the  slaves,  T 
would  do  it;  and  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  some  ana 
leaving  others  alone,  I  would  do  that.  What  I  do  about 
slavery  and  the  colored  race,  I  do  because  I  believe  it  helps 
to  save  the  Union.  And  what  I  forbear,  I  forbear  because 
I  do  not  believe  it  would  help  to  save  the  Union."  But  no 
one  believed  more  fervently  than  did  Lincoln  that  slavery 
would  ultimately  meet  its  death,  with  or  without  the  pres- 
ervation of  the  Union.  As  a  matter  of  morals,  and  in  a 
humane  view  of  the  case,  they  were  right;  but  as  a  matter 
of  policy  and  expediency,  they  were  wrong. 

The  seceding  states  by  making  war  upon  our  Govern- 
ment, and  the  institution  of  slavery  being  wrongful,  our 
generals  in  command  could  have  accepted  and  declared  the 
slaves  free,  in  the  territory  conquered  and  controlled  by 
them.  This  was  the  course  General  John  C.  Fremont  de- 
sired to  pursue,  but  was  prevented.  This  would  be  a  par- 
allel case  with  liberating  a  convict  in  prison,  if  the  com- 
mander of  the  army  found  him  wrongfully  incarcerated 
therein,  in  a  district  still  at  war.  Now  looking  back  for 
over  a  half  century,  we  can  say  with  the  abolitionists  slav- 
very  was  destroyed  because  it  was  right  that  it  should  be, 
and  that  the  United  States  could  not  afford  longer,  to  be 
a  partner  in  such  a  crime. 

71 


All  agitators  are  at  times  extremists,  and  the  abolition- 
ists, were  no  exception  to  this  rule,  and  often  became  un- 
reasonable and  evenly  insanely  mad. 

Lincoln  was  denounced  by  them  in  bitter  terms,  be- 
cause he  would  not  proclaim  himself  an  avowed  abolition- 
ist, and  that  the  Civil  War  was  being  waged  to  destroy 
slavery. 

With  these  extremists  the  preservation  of  the  union 
was  a  secondary  consideration.  The  cardinal  doctrine  was 
disunion  as  against  slavery. 

Their  zealous  hatred  of  slavery  led  to  unwise  and 
dangerous  conclusions,  but  it  must  be  admitted  that  these 
agitators  led  to  the  downfall  of  slavery..  Lincoln,  how- 
ever gave  the  stroke  which  destroyed  it,  and  at  the  same 
time  preserved  the  Union,  his  paramount  object. 

CONCLUSION 

I  here  sum  up  the  conclusions  I  have  reached  in  my 
study  of  the  Abolition  Party,  as  follows:  That  the  Consti- 
tution did  not  extend  to  the  territories,  and  that  Congress 
had  the  right  to  prohibit  slavery,  in  them,  and  that  slavery 
was  a  curse  to  the  South  and  retarded  its  progress  in  every- 
thing that  was  worthy  and  humane.  That  the  slaves  were 
generally  happy  and  contented  with  their  lot,  but  this 
was  no  argument  for  its  continuance ;  that  the  immoralities 
arising  from  the  amalgamation  of  the  races,  were  far 
greater  in  slave  localities  than  those  of  freedom,  in  propor- 
tion to  the  population ;  that  the  white  people  of  the  south 
would  never  again  vote  upon  themselves  the  curse  of  slav- 
ery; that  the  new  South  is  far  in  advance  of  the  old  South 

72 


by  reason  of  its  destruction.  That  the  doctrine  of  the  so- 
called  ''States  Rights"  along  with  the  gross  iniquities  of 
slavery  were  shot  to  death  during  the  "Civil  War." 

The  downfall  of  slavery  was  accomplished  by  the  agi- 
tation of  the  Abolition  Party  in  the  North  and  that  of  the 
defenders  of  slavery  in  the  South.  But  the  Abolition  Party 
did  not  have  the  opportunity  to  take  part  in  the  Councils  of 
the  Nation  in  this  consummation.  Our  statesmen  fore- 
fathers, both  North  and  South,  desired  and  hoped  for  the 
extermination  of  slavery  in  the  United  States,  but  feared 
and  trembled  that  civil  strife  might  arise  and  wreck  our 
republic  fabric. 

I  conclude  by  substituting  the  figure  of  an  elongated 
triangle,  showing  the  agitation  which  brought  about  the 
destruction  of  slavery.  At  one  angle  of  the  base  of  the 
triangle,  there  stood  the  agitators,  Calhoun,  Stephens, 
Taney  and  Jefferson  Davis,  with  a  host  of  followers,  de- 
manding the  extension  and  recognition  of  slavery  in  every 
state  and  territory  of  the  Union.  At  the  opposite  angle 
of  the  base,  stood  Garrison,  Phillips,  Lovejoy,  and  Helper, 
with  a  large  following  of  enthusiasts,  demanding  the  im- 
mediate emancipation  of  the  slaves,  without  compensation 
to  their  owners. 

While,  at  the  apex  of  the  triangle,  stood  the  immor- 
tal Lincoln,  who  had  fought  the  extension  of  slavery,  so 
as  to  place  it  in  the  course  of  ultimate  extinction  and  while 
President  of  the  United  States,  gave  strokes  with  his  pen, 
which  removed  the  shackles  from  four  million  slaves  and 
millions  of  freemen  stood  by,  shouting  approval,  while  the 
nations  of  the  earth  looked  on  and  said,  'Amen." 


73 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  SHABBONA,  CHIEF 
OF  THE  POTAWOTAMIES 

By  The   Author 

Read  before  the  McLean  County  Historical  Sodiety 

tN  giving  a  sketch  of  the  life  and  character  of  the  most 
J     wonderful  Indian  of  modern  times,  I  am  grateful  to  my 

father  for  important  facts  and  data.  My  father  emi- 
grated to  Illinois  from  Tennessee  in  1827,  first  settling  in 
Morgan  county,  then  in  McLean  county,  then  in  White 
Oak  Grove,  Woodford  county  in  1832.  In  the  fall  of  1833 
he  made  a  prospecting  tour  of  the  northern  part  of  the  state 
with  a  view  of  securing  United  States  government  lands. 
He  started  on  the  morning  of  November  12,  1833,  riding 
his  celebrated  mare  "Blaze."  This  mare  was  ridden  by 
General  Gridley  in  the  Blackhawk  war.  One  of  his  ob- 
jectives being  Shabbona  Grove,  DeKalb  county,  with  a  view 
of  learning  more  of  that  celebrated  chief.  His  pathway 
was  mostly  along  Indian  trails  and  rough  roads.  He  passed 
over  what  is  now  Kappa,  El  Paso  and  Minonk,  stopping 
a  few  miles  south  of  what  is  now  the  town  of  Tonica.  His 
horse  was  fed  and  a  late  dinner  served,  and  he  renewed  his 
journey,  crossed  the  Illinois  river  at  what  is  now  known  as 
"Starved  Rock  Ford"  and  proceeded  to  where  the  Fox 
river  empties  in  the  Illinois.  He  followed  the  Fox  river 
passing  what  is  now  Ottawa;  arriving  awhile  before  night 
at  the  Old  Fox  River  Inn,  where  he  ate  his  supper  and 
turned  in  for  the  night. 

Here  on  the  morning  of  November  13,  beginning  at  2 
o'clock  was  witnessed  the  most  wonderful  and  as  yet  unex- 
plained meteorological  phenomenon  in  the  heavens  that  ever 

74 


occurred  in  this  or  any  other  quarter  of  the  globe.  It  is 
known  or  called  in  the  geographies  of  the  heavens  as  the 
event  or  display  of  the  shooting  stars. 

My  father  claimed  that  he  was  the  first  person  in  the 
Inn  to  discover  the  blazing  meteors.  In  describing  the 
magnificent  fiery  spectacle  he  said  that  the  brilliant  light  in 
the  heavens  enabled  one  to  see  very  small  objects  on  the 
floor  without  the  aid  of  other  light.  The  meteors  and  rock- 
ets seemed  to  start  a  little  southeast  of  the  zenith  and  pro- 
ceeded to  the  northwest  at  great  rapidity  and  at  angles  vary- 
ing from  35  to  G5  degrees  and  fell  as  thick  as  snowflakes. 
There  was  no  letup  in  the  magnitude  of  the  blazing  pyro- 
technical  scene  until  the  approaching  rays  of  the  sun  put 
an  end  to  the  beauty  of  the  display.  Some  twelve  or  four- 
teen persons  remained  over  night  at  the  Inn,  among  whom 
was  a  Methodist  minister  named  Duncan,  who  searched 
from  the  Bible,  the  Book  of  Revelations  fortelling 
of  the  event.  No  one  was  in  fear  that  the 
judgment  day  had  come,  and  it  was  demonstrated 
that  these  wonders  were  harmless,  and  that  the 
destruction  of  either  life  or  property  would  not 
ensue.  The  minister  searched  the  Scriptures  for  a 
prophecy  of  the  heavenly  disturbance.  Passages  were  read 
but  opinions  differed,  but  using  the  image  employed  in  the 
apocalyse,  as  set  forth  in  the  revelation  of  the  opening 
of  the  sixth  seal,  "the  stars  of  heaven  fell  unto  the  earth 
even  as  the  fig  tree  casteth  her  untimely  figs  upon  the 
ground  when  shaken  of  a  mighty  wind."  The  stars  were 
of  three  kinds,  the  straightforward  shooter  at  an  angle  of 
35  degrees;  the  "blazing  meteor"  and  sparkling  balls  of  fire 
and  like  appearances  of  fire  that  seemed  to  be  fixed  in  the 
firmament.      The  meteors  were  of  various  hues  and  closely 

75 


ranging  from  a  white  furnace  heat  to  a  fiery  red,  with  in- 
termingling colors  of  yellow,  green  and  blue.  The  oblong 
shapes  seemed  to  reflect  the  seven  colors  of  the  rainbow. 

High  up  were  occasionally  seen  balls  of  fire,  which 
trembled  for  a  few  seconds  and  then  shot  in  vertical  lines  to 
the  earth.  Some  would  apparently  reach  a  point  twenty- 
five  to  seventy-five  feet  from  the  earth,  then  flicker  out  and 
disappear.  Some  astronomers  have  argued  that  these  sup- 
posed distances  were  optical  illusions.  Observers  of  those 
wonders  on  the  coming  of  daylight  examined  the  earth  for 
evidences  of  combustion,  and  a  brownish  ash  substance  in 
small  particles  was  found. 

Of  all  meteorological  events  ever  witnessed  in  modern 
times,  I  give  it  as  my  opinion  that  the  most  tangible  thing 
that  can  be  offered  is  that  the  earth  at  that  time  was  passing 
through  the  tail  of  a  comet;  and  yet  this  contention  is  not 
free  from  attack. 

After  breakfast  my  father  sped  away  to  the  home  of 
George  L.  Hallenbeck  in  the  grove  bearing  his  name  on 
Fox  river  in  what  is  now  Kendall  county.  It  was  here 
that  Shabbona's  pony  dropped  dead  from  a  forced  ride  he 
was  making  to  warn  the  white  settlers  of  the  impending 
tomahawk.  Mr.  Hallenbeck  furnished  him  with  a  swift 
horse  and  he  speeded  on  his  journey.  My  father  had  the 
hospitality  of  this  old  settler,  and  both  proceeded  on  horse- 
back to  Shabbona's  village,  arriving  there  in  the  afternoon, 
where  father  was  introduced  by  his  companion  to  Shabbona. 
the  beloved  chief  of  the  Potawotamies.  Mr.  Hallenbeck 
returned  home  the  same  day. 

Shabbona  was  then  located  on  two  sections  of  land  in 
the  southwest  part  of  DeKalb  county,  set  apart  to  him  as  a 
reservation  under  the  treaty  of  July  29,  1829,  between  the 

76 


United  States  and  the  Indian  tribes  at  Prairie  Du  Chien, 
Wisconsin,  by  which  all  the  Indian  lands  in  northern  Illinois 
were  ceded  to  the  United  States.  The  tribes  represented 
at  that  treaty  were  the  Ottawas,  Chippewas  and  Potawota- 
mies.  Shabbona  was  the  chief  of  all  those  tribes.  When 
father  and  Mr.  Hallenbeck  had  reached  a  point  within  about 
three  miles  of  the  Shabbona  village,  the  latter  discovered  an 
Indian  boy  some  six  years  of  age,  dressed  in  true  Indian 
style.  He  evidently  was  engaged  in  picking  wild  prairie 
hawes.  On  being  discovered  he  at  once  started  on  a  swift 
run  toward  some  tall  slough  grass  some  three  hundred  yards 
away.  Hallenbeck  suggested  to  give  chase  and  catch  him ; 
they  gave  chase  but  all  to  no  purpose.  The  little  fellow 
was  fleet  and  reached  the  tall  grass  some  fifty  yards  ahead 
of  his  pursuers  and  escaped,  after  the  manner  of  a  scared 
quail.  Shortly  after  reaching  the  village  my  father  was 
taken  severely  ill  and  for  one  day  and  two  nights  he  enjoyed 
the  hospitality  of  the  great  Shabbona,  receiving  food,  shel- 
ter and  medicine.  My  father  was  a  stranger  to  him,  but 
he  took  him  in  and  administered  to  his  wants  and  assigned 
him  a  part  of  his  wigwam.  Speaking  of  this  experience 
my  father  said  such  generous  hospitality  he  had  never  seen 
before,  and  was  an  exception  to  the  general  make  up  of  the 
Indian  race.  The  medicine  given  him  was  herb  teas.  The 
fever  was  broken  and  on  the  morning  of  November  15,  he 
started  on  his  return  trip.  He  was  conducted  out  of  the 
grove  by  Shabbona  on  the  trail  to  Indian  Creek  and  thence 
to  Ottawa,  the  chief  leading  the  way,  with  an  elastic  step 
and  fine  physique,  erect  as  he  walked,  one  of  the  most  per- 
fect athletes  in  the  world. 

The  two  parted  with  a  warm  shake  of  the  hand  some 
three  miles  from  the  village.      Father  crossed  Indian  Creek 

77 


at  the  scene  of  the  massacre  of  the  white  settlers  by  Sac 
and  Fox  Indians  on  May  21,  1832.  Mr.  Davis  and  fifteen 
other  victims  of  his  colony  were  sleeping  the  sleep  that 
knows  no  wakening  in  a  long  grave  carefully  preserved 
from  the  ravages  of  time.  In  the  year  1906  a  monument 
was  erected  to  the  memory  of  those  who  fell  under  the  blow 
of  the  tomahawk. 

He  arrived  at  Fox  River  Inn  about  noon  where  he 
again  rested  and  dined  and  met  some  of  the  people  he  had 
seen  on  the  morning  of  the  13th.  In  an  hour  he  renewed  his 
travel,  following  from  that  time  about  the  same  route  as 
going,  except  that  he  deflected  some  to  remain  over  night 
with  a  settler  east  of  the  town  of  Wenona,  in  order  to  look 
at  some  government  land  in  that  vicinity.  He  left  about 
noon,  November  16,  and  hastened  on,  arriving  at  his  home 
a  little  before  nightfall,  tired  and  sore  but  with  a  joyful 
heart  to  again  commune  with  his  family. 

Recurring  to  the  scenes  at  Shabbona's  Grove,  father 
said  that  his  inquiry  of  the  chief  as  to  the  place  of  his  birth, 
left  it  in  doubt.  He  said  he  was  born  in  1775.  Some  of 
the  early  settlers  claimed  he  was  born  in  Canada,  but  Wat- 
son in  his  history  of  the  Blackhawk  War,  says  that  he  was 
born  on  the  Kankakee  River  at  or  near  the  present  site  of 
Joliet.  His  squaw,  Canoka,  was  born  near  Dixon,  Illinois,  the 
daughter  of  a  Potawotamie  chief,  and  at  his  death  Shab- 
bona  succeeded  to  the  rule  of  that  tribe.  Canoka  weighed 
four  hundred  pounds.  She  had  a  mania  for  beads  and  it 
is  said  that  at  times  she  wore  a  hundred  strands  around  her 
neck.  In  the  summer  of  1861,  she  was  thrown  out  of  a 
wagon  with  her  grandchild  and  both  drowned  in  Nettle 
Creek  in  six  inches  of  water  a  few  miles  from  home. 

Shabbona  assured  my   father  that  none  of  his  lands 


were  for  sale,  that  he  would  hold  them  to  raise  fat  oxen  and 
drive  to  Chicago.  The  account  says  that  he  had  some  fine 
specimens  of  the  bovine  species  feeding  on  matted  bluegrass. 
He,  however,  sold  all  of  the  two  sections  except  about  one 
hundred  acres.  Under  the  aforesaid  treaty  none  of  his 
tribe  were  to  share  in  these  lands,  except  his  own  family. 

In  1836  the  government  removed  the  Potawotamies 
west  of  the  Mississippi  River  to  a  reservation  in  the 
state  of  Iowa.  The  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  also  had  a 
reservation  several  miles  away,  and  the  hatred  of  these 
tribes  against  Shabbona  and  his  family  was  such  that  they 
killed  a  son  and  nephew  of  Shabbona  soon  after  his  removal 
to  Iowa.  Attempts  were  also  made  by  these  savages  on  the 
life  of  the  old  chieftain,  and  becoming  disheartened  and 
filled  with  dread,  he  and  his  family  and  a  few  intimate 
Indian  friends,  in  the  fall  of  1837,  returned  to  Illinois. 
These  poor  unfortunates  numbered  about  twenty-five.  On 
arriving  at  his  home  his  heart  was  again  filled  with  horror 
and  despair.  He  saw  that  his  lands  had  been  devastated, 
his  fine  timber  cut  down,  and  large  quantities  hauled  away 
for  lumber;  the  graves  of  his  twin  sons  and  others  dese- 
crated by  the  ruthless  hand  of  unprincipled  "pale  faces." 
Many  of  his  old  white  friends  called  upon  him  to  give  con- 
solation and  cheer.  He  prayed  the  Good  Spirit  to  give  him 
peace  of  mind  and  power  to  drown  his  sorrows.  Soon 
after  the  sale  of  his  lands  in  1845,  he  rejoined  his  tribe,  but 
this  time  in  Kansas  where  he  remained  with  his  family  until 
1850  when  he  came  back  to  Illinois.  It  is  said  that  in 
1817  that  his  land  was  forfeited  to  the  government  by  the 
duplicity  of  his  agents,  the  Gates  brothers,  and  the  Commis- 
sioner of  United  States  Land  Office,  by  their  false  affidavits 
that  Shabbona  had  abandoned  his  lands.      They  were  then 

79 


listed  as  government  lands  and  sold  for  $1.25  per  acre. 
Nothing  has  ever  equaled  the  treachery  of  our  government 
and  the  agents  of  the  noble  chief  in  the  act  of  forfeiting  his 
lands.  That  he  was  robbed  of  them  without  the  warrant  of 
law  or  the  semblance  of  justice,  there  can  be  no  doubt.  Dis- 
consolate and  dazed,  the  old  Chieftain  wandered  about  the 
country  pitching  his  wigwam  in  secluded  spots  in  Grundy, 
La  Salle,  DeKalb  and  Kendall  counties;  partaking  of  the 
hospitality  of  his  old  white  friends  who  reverenced  him  for 
his  daring  in  saving  the  lives  of  so  many  white  settlers.  In 
1857  the  citizens  of  La  Salle  and  Grundy  counties,  headed 
by  Lucian  Sanger,  raised  by  subscription  $500  to  purchase 
a  twenty-acre  tract  of  land  and  the  charitable  ladies  raised 
enough  money  to  build  a  house  thereon  as  a  permanent 
home  for  Shabbona  and  his  family. 

But  this  child  of  nature,  true  to  his  instincts,  he  and  his 
squaw,  Canoka,  would  not  occupy  it,  preferring  to  live  in 
a  wig-wam  which  they  erected  near  by.  This  location  was 
between  Seneca  and  Morris.  Here  on  July  17,  1859,  the 
great  and  merciful  Shabbona  died.  His  funeral  was  im- 
pressive and  tearful  and  largely  attended.  On  the  19th  of 
August,  1897,  at  Old  Settlers  Meeting  in  Ottawa,  the  pro- 
ject was  started  to  erect  to  his  memory  a  suitable  monument. 
It  was  erected  in  the  cemetery  at  Morris,  Illinois,  to  mark 
the  resting  place  of  himself,  Canoka  and  other  members  of 
his  family. 

On  October  23,  1903,  an  appropriate  and  impressive 
memorial  service  was  held  at  the  burial  place,  and  the  large 
prairie  granite  boulder  was  dedicated  to  commemorate  the 
memory  of  one  of  the  most  wonderful  men  of  modern 
times.  An  immense  concourse  of  people  were  present  to 
pay  the  last  tribute  of  respect.       Mr.  R.  C.  Jordan,  a  well 

80 


known  merchant  of  Ottawa,  delivered  the  oration,  which 
was  beautiful  and  pathetic  and  was  received  with  hearty 
applause.  In  speaking  of  this  noble  and  kind  hearted  man, 
he  said  ''Character  speaks  louder  than  words.  A  great  man 
never  dies.  And  great  are  the  people  who  are  great  enough 
to  know  what  is  great.  Man  has  shown  an  innate  good- 
ness by  his  disposition  in  all  ages  to  laud  the  good  deeds  of 
his  fellows.  And  that  he  has  ever  cherished  ideals  higher 
than  self  is  proven  by  the  tributes  offered  to  the  memory  of 
his  dead.  These  tributes  have  pictured  the  highest  ideals 
of  his  time." 

The  part  taken  by  Shabbona  and  his  valorous  deeds 
shown  while  fighting  in  the  Indian  wars  are  so  fully  re- 
counted in  our  history  that  further  mention  is  not  necessary. 
I  desire  however  to  recall  one  instance.  Shabbona  was  sec- 
ond in  command  of  the  Indian  forces  at  the  battle  of  the 
Thames.  Tecumseh,  highest  in  command,  fell  dead  pierced 
by  a  bullet,  Col.  Richard  M.  Johnson  fell  badly  wounded. 
Shabbona,  who  succeeded  to  the  command,  rushed  to  the 
side  of  the  colonel  and  showed  the  magnanimity  of  his 
heart  towards  a  fallen  foe  by  preventing  an  Indian  from 
tomahawking  him.  Colonel  Johnson  never  forgot  this 
gracious  act  and  years  afterwards,  while  vice-president  of 
the  United  States,  bestowed  upon  the  chivalrous  chief,  a 
valuable  gift  of  a  gold  watch  and  chain. 

The  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  derisively  dubbed  Shabbona 
as  the  ''White  Man's  Friend",  and  so  he  was  and  as  such 
experienced  many  hair  breadth  escapes  at  the  hands  of  the 
savages.  He  saved  the  lives  of  hundreds  of  whites  by  giv- 
ing them  timely  warning.  Had  William  Davis  heeded  his 
warning,  the  massacre  of  himself  and  band  of  followers 
would  have  been  averted.      Shabbona  gave  vent  to  the  fol- 


lowing  sentiment  long  before  his  death,  "I  hate  baby  killers 
and  women  scalpers  and  for  this  I  expect  to  die  by  the 
hands  of  my  enemies."  But  his  prediction  was  not  realized. 
The  Great  Spirit  hovered  over  him  and  protected  him  from 
all  harm.  In  other  words  his  life  seems  to  have  been 
spared  in  order  that  he  be  a  benefit  and  blessing  to  the  hu- 
man raoe. 

Shabbona  was  an  Ottawa  Indian  by  birth  and  it  is 
claimed  a  nephew  of  the  great  Chief  Pontiac.  By  virtue  of 
the  Indian  marriage  rule,  when  he  married  Canoka,  he  be- 
came a  member  of  the  Potawotamie  tribe.  He  was  a  man 
of  great  intellectual  force  and  vital  energy,  and  weighed 
about  220  pounds.  He  had  the  instincts  of  a  great  general 
and  leader  of  men,  and  had  the  faculty  for  the  promotion  of 
useful  industrial  schemes.  He  was  in  many  respects  the 
superior  of  Eli  S.  Parker,  the  New  York  Seneca  Indian 
chief,  and  who  for  many  years  resided  at  Galena,  and  dur- 
ing the  Civil  War  was  private  secretary  to  General  Grant, 
and  at  the  surrender  of  General  Lee,  wrote  the  terms  of  the 
surrender  at  the  dictation  of  General  Grant,  and  at  the  close 
of  the  war  Parker  was  breveted  brigadier  general. 

My  father  on  hearing  of  the  death  of  Shabbona  penned 
the  following  tribute  to  his  memory,  "A  great  and  good 
man  has  passed  on.  No  words  of  mine  can  fully  express 
my  appreciation  of  his  kindness  to  me.  I  have  often 
thought  that  his  valuable  services  to  humanity  have  never 
been  fully  appreciated  and  especially  by  a  large  number  of 
white  people.  He  was  an  Indian,  but  had  the  instinct  and 
tenderness  of  heart  of  the  highest  type  of  the  white  race. 
The  name  Shabbona  will  live  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  as 
long  as  time  lasts,  and  long  after  his  dreaded  enemies  have 
been  forgotten.     It  was  my  wish  to  again  take  him  by  the 


82 


hand  before  his  death,  and  look  into  the  face  of  a  man  who 
was  as  noble  and  grand  as  he  appeared,  and  whose  thought 
was  to  be  on  terms  of  peace  with  all  mankind,  and  serve  the 
world  in  the  capacity  of  a  good  Samaritan." 

CONCLUSION 

Recently  I  stood  at  the  grave  of  one  of  the  most  beauti- 
ful and  lovable  characters  in  the  history  of  this  or  any  other 
age,  and  I  thought  of  the  wondrous  deeds  of  mercy  of  one 
of  the  greatest  examples  of  true  humanity.  The  world 
should  be  blessed  with  more  divinely  gifted  men  of  the  type 
of  Shabbona.  With  a  good  education  and  sur- 
rounded with  proper  environments  and  opportunities 
he  could  have  shown  himself  the  equal  of  some 
of  our  leading  statesmen  of  the  present  time.  He  was  as 
tender  hearted  as  a  child,  mild,  courteous  and  loving,  and 
yet  he  had  the  courage  of  a  heroic  leader. 

His  intellect  was  keen  and  his  foresight  correct,  but  his 
counsel  and  advice  were  unheeded  by  the  hostile  and  war- 
like tribes  and  for  this  he  received  anathemas  and  condem- 
nation, and  risked  his  life  in  daring  acts  for  the  right. 

When  I  looked  upon  that  monument,  rough  as  it  was,  I 
thought  of  the  noble  impulses  of  that  dead  chieftain,  and 
again  marveled  at  the  base  ingratitude  of  man  to  man.  The 
•expression  "Lo  the  poor  Indian"  is  not  without  meaning. 
That  many  tribes  of  Indians  throughout  the  United 
States  on  flimsy  pretexts  were  robbed  of  their 
lands  without  just  compensation  or  excuse,  there 
can  I  think,  be  no  question,  yet  their  atrocities  committed 
upon  old  men  and  defenseless  women  and  children  were 
horrible  outrages  and  inexcusable;  but  these  atrocities  of 
the  uncivilized  aborigines  of  North  America  were  mild  as 

83 


compared  with  those  perpetrated  by  so  stykd,  enlightened 
peoples  across  the  seas  in  the  late  European  war.  There- 
fore let  us  not  misrepresent  the  Indian  savage,  cruel  as  he 
was,  but  give  him  his  true  place  in  history,  and  let  us  ever 
remember  that  the  immortal  Shabbona  was  not  only  a  friend 
of  the  Indian  but  also  of  all  races  of  mankind. 


THE  STORY  OF  AN  INDIAN 

By  The  Author 

t  DESIRE  to  give  an  -essay  on  one  of  the  most  noted  In- 
J     dians  of  modern  times,  and  a  man  who  gained  a  wide 

American  national  reputation,  both  in  governmental 
and  war  affairs.  I  refer  to  the  famous  Sachem  of  the  Sen- 
eca Tribe  of  New  York,  and  who  became  a  resident  of  Ga- 
lena, Illinois,  many  years  ago,  and  who  was  a  lasting  friend 
and  co-worker  with  General  Grant.  Very  few  people  know 
the  real  history  of  this  famous  chief,  whose  English  name 
was  Ely  S.  Parker.  I  shall  preface  this  essay  by  giving  a 
brief  sketch  of  that  most  celebrated  tribe  of  Indians  known 
as  the  Senecas.  The  origin  of  this  tribe  is  unknown.  They 
were  called  Tsonondonaka  (meaning  people  of  the  great 
hill  or  mountain).  This  probably  may  refer  to  the  lofty 
peak  south  of  Canadaigua  Lake.  The  Senecas  were  said 
to  be  closely  associated  with  the  Mohawks  and  Onondagas, 
and  in  habits  and  appearance  were  more  like  the  Oneidas 
and  Cayugas.  Their  earliest  known  Council  was  held  south 
of  the  above  named  lake. 

The  Senecas  extended  their  boundaries  west  of  the 
Genesee  river  and  were  also  scattered  along  Lake  Erie  and 
the  Allegheny  river.     They  belonged  to  what  was  known 

84 


as  the  famous  Iroquois  Indian  Confederation  League.  At 
one  time  eleven  different  tribes  were  banded  together  with 
the  Senecas.  These  tribes  were  admitted  to  replace  the 
losses  in  the  almost  interminable  wars  of  the  League,  which 
lasted  about  seventy-five  years.  This  tribe  is  now  distri- 
buted over  several  different  reservations  in  the  state  of 
New  York,  the  Tuscorawas  being,  perhaps,  the  most  impor- 
tant. Some  300  or  400  so-called  Senecas  are  in  the  In- 
dian Territory,  but  history  says  it  is  doubtful  if  they  were 
ever  true  Senecas.  In  the  American  Revolution  they  es- 
poused the  cause  of  Great  Britain,  as  against  the  Colonies. 
The  Senecas  were  more  progressive  in  the  arts  and  knowl- 
edge of  civilization  than  were  the  majority  of  all  other 
tribes.  Hiawatha,  in  describing  the  traits  of  character  of 
the  five  nations  namely :  the  Mohawks,  Oneidas,  Onon- 
dagas,  Cayugas  and  Senecas,  says  of  the  latter  in  this  wise : 
"And  you  Senecas,  a  people  who  live  in  the  open  country 
and  possess  much  wisdom  shall  be  the  fifth  nation,  because 
you  understand  the  art  of  raising  corn  and  beans  and 
making  cabins." 

The  Allegheny  reservation  in  Cattaraugus  county, 
New  York,  has  wonderful  features,  both  socially  and  poli- 
tically, and  the  Senecas  everywhere  are  highly  respected  by 
the  whites.  Counties,  cities  and  villages  have  been  named 
in  honor  of  this  most  wonderful  tribe  of  Indians.  It  has 
also  given  to  the  world  educators,  poets,  inventors,  builders 
and  warriors  of  much  renown,  but,  perhaps,  the  most  noted 
is  the  one  of  whom  we  are  to  speak  in  detail.  Time  will 
not  permit  me  to  further  elucidate  in  general  on  the  Seneca 
people,  peculiarly  gifted  and  possessed  of  genuine  progres- 
sive ideas.  They  have  in  a  large  degree  kept  pace  with 
civilization. 

85 


I  will  give  the  traditional  story  of  this  great  man,  as 
remembered  by  me  from  one  of  Galena's  prominent  citizens. 
The  mother  of  an  Indian  babe  dreamed  a  strange  dream. 
In  her  vision  she  saw  a  rainbow  and  under  it  her  little  son's 
name  in  English  letters.  The  Wolf  family  of  the  Seneca 
Indians,  residing  near  Buffalo,  said  the  dream  meant  that 
her  infant  son  would  some  day  become  a  chief  among  the 
white  people  and  would  gain  renown.  The  child  was  born 
at  the  Tonawanda  residence  in  New  York  in  1828  (exact 
date  has  been  lost).  His  first  name  was  changed  to  that 
of  Donehagawa,  signifying  ''holding  the  open  door  or 
guarding  the  western  gate,"  when  he  became  the  eighth 
chief  of  the  tribe.  The  boy,  from  his  early  boyhood  days, 
heard  the  prophecy  and  shaped  his  life  accordingly.  In 
youth  he  showed  talents,  courage  and  strength,  and  these 
won  him  the  rank  of  Sachem  of  the  Senecas.  But  the  Ab- 
orignee  rank  and  title  did  not  satisfy  the  ambition  of  the 
youth.  He  remembered  the  prophecy  and  determined  to 
see  its  fulfillment  and  become  renowned  as  a  white  man. 

While  yet  a  small  boy  he  took  the  name  of  Ely  S.  Par- 
ker and  began  his  struggle  to  reach  the  standard  of  his  fa- 
mous white  brethren.  From  this  time  the  traditional  ceases 
and  his  actual  career  in  life  begins.  From  the  first  there 
were  unexpected  obstacles  in  his  path.  When  he  had  ac- 
quired a  fair,  common  school  education,  he  wished  to  go  to 
college,  but  found  all  avenues  closed  to  him.  He  studied 
law,  but  when  he  applied  for  admission  to  the  bar,  he  was 
told  by  the  authorities  that  Indians  were  not  citizens,  and 
that  inasmuch  as  he  was  not  a  citizen,  he  could  not  become 
a  lawyer.  The  fact  that  his  ancestors  had  reigned  in  Amer- 
ica centuries  before  the  discovery  by  Columbus,  and  the 
right  of  possession  to  lands,  could  make  no  difference.  But 

86 


checked  at  every  point  in  his  ambition,  he  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  other  fields.  He  attended  a  Polytechnical  Insti- 
tute in  Troy,  New  York.  There  it  was  that  he  became  edu- 
cated as  a  civil  engineer.  He  also  took  up  the  calling  in  Ga- 
lena of  contractor  and  builder  and  superintended  the  struc- 
ture of  many  buildings,  including  the  post  offices  in  Ga- 
lena and  Dubuque.  His  destiny  seemed  to  wane  there,  for 
at  Galena  this  taciturn  Indian  was  on  all  sides  balked  in  his 
efforts  to  rise  in  life.  While  thus  depressed  he  met  the  Si- 
lent Man  of  Destiny,  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  and  so  attractive  to 
each  other  did  th-ey  become  that  a  long  life  friendship  was 
the  result.  Each  of  these  peculiarly  gifted  men,  then  but 
little  known,  saw  the  opportunity  to  redeem  himself  and 
win  lasting  honors. 

Parker's  chance  to  become  illustrious  had  now  appar- 
ently arisen.  He  applied  to  the  governor  of  New  York 
for  a  commission  in  the  Federal  Army.  This  was  refused. 
A  like  request  was  also  refused  on  his  application  to  the 
Washington  authorities.  But  Lincoln,  the  great  patriot 
and  humane  man.  was  to  be  consulted,  and  early  in  the  year 
1863,  Lincoln  issued  to  Parker  a  captain's  commission  in 
the  United  States  Army,  and  ordered  him  to  report  for 
duty  to  General  Grant,  then  in  command  of  some  of  the 
western  divisions  of  the  Federal  troops.  Grant  cheerfully 
gave  him  a  position  on  his  staff  and  soon  after  made  him 
his  military  secretary.  This  appointment  was  the  result 
of  Parker's  distinguished  services  in  the  Vicksburg  cam- 
paign. In  May,  1803,  he  was  created  assistant  adjutant 
general.  On  April  10,  1865,  through  the  recommendation 
of  General  Grant,  he  became  brigadier  general  of  volun- 
teers. In  lSilG  he  was  first  lieutenant  of  cavalry  in  the 
United   States   Army,   and   from   March  2,   1807.   he  took 


command  of  officer's  grade  of  captain,  major,  lieutenant, 
colonel  and  brigadier  general  in  the  same  Army. 

Parker  was  such  a  fine  penman,  and  by  reason  of  this 
fact  and  the  trust  that  Grant  reposed  in  him,  that  he  con- 
tinued him  as  "secretary,  both  for  his  private  and  official 
correspondence. 

General  Parker  was  an  important  personage  at  the 
surrender  of  General  Lee  at  Appomattox.  He  engrossed 
the  terms  of  Lee's  surrender  in  duplicate  from  the  original 
prepared  by  General  Grant,  and  made  some  important 
amendments  thereto,  by  both  erasure  and  interlineation, 
under  Grant's  direction.  I  quote  from  one  who  vouches 
for  its  correctness,  but  who  seems  to  be  quite  zealous,  as 
follows : 

"When  Lee  entered  the  room  (McLean  residence)  to 
sign  the  document  and  caught  the  first  glimpse  of  Parker 
he  thought  that  Grant  had  sought  to  insult  him,  by  having 
a  negro  present  to  witness  his  official  humiliation.  But  as 
soon  as  he  learned  that  Parker  was  an  Indian,  the  Confed- 
erate general  treated  him  with  extreme  courtesy." 

I  very  much  doubt  the  truthfulness  of  that  account 
for  two  reasons.  First,  because  General  Grant,  in  his  per- 
sonal memoirs,  which  are  very  complete,  does  not  mention 
one  word  about  such  an  incident,  but  does  tell  what  Par- 
ker did  on  that  occasion ;  and,  second,  because  Gen.  Lee 
knew  the  peculiarities  and  general  make-up  of  both  the  In- 
dian and  negro  races  so  well  that  with  such  a  striking,  re- 
markable and  intelligent  character  as  Ely  S.  Parker  sit- 
ting before  him,  he  could  not  be  deceived.  The  entire  story 
of  such  a  thing  happening  is  ridiculous  and  improbable  on 
its  face. 

In  1869,  General  Parker  resigned  his  commission  in 

88 


the  Army  and  accepted  an  appointment  from  President 
Grant,  as  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs.  In  1867  Gen. 
Parker  caused  much  astonishment  in  Washington  society 
by  marrying  Miss  Minnie  Sackett,  a  belle  of  that  city.  Of 
this  union  there  was  a  daughter,  handsome,  modest  and 
accomplished.  Nickerson  Parker,  a  brother  of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  also  married  a  white  woman.  I  was 
informed  that  the  brother  is  still  living  in  Cattaraugus 
Reservation  of  New  York.  Mrs.  Caroline  Mountpleasant 
was  a  sister  of  General  Parker  and  was  a  teacher  in  the 
Sunday  school  of  the  Baptist  church  of  the  Tuscarawas 
Reservation  for  many  years.  She  was  a  woman  of  culture, 
education  and  refinement.  She  was  also  sympathetic, 
benevolent  and  forbearing  and  was  beloved  by  all  who 
knew  her.  Her  nephew,  Frank  Mountpleasant,  had  charge 
of  the  church  work.  These  wonderful  people,  and  those 
connected  with  them  in  the  marriage  relation,  were  receiv- 
ed into  good  society. 

But  prejudice  to  the  inferior  races  still  continued  to 
exist,  and  Gen.  Parker's  brilliant  career,  which  seemed  des- 
tined to  go  with  him  through  life,  began  to  dim  soon  after 
the  close  of  President  Grant's  administration.  Then  it 
was  that  his  public  life  ended.  About  this  time  a  bank  fail- 
ure swept  away  Parker's  fortune  and  he  was  left  penniless. 
The  impoverished  old  chieftain  took  up  his  residence  in 
New  York  City,  where  for  a  few  years  only,  he  filled  the 
office  of  supply  clerk  in  the  New  York  police  department. 

The  city  directory  recorded  the  old  Sachem  general 
simply  as  "Parker,  Ely  S.,  clerk,  300  Mulberry  street, 
house,  253  West  42nd  St." 

Leaving  New  York  City  he  returned  to  his  summer 
home  in  Fairfield,  Conn.,  where  he  died  August  21,  1895. 

89 


His  funeral  obsequies  were  performed  by  officers  and  min- 
isters of  the  Seneca  tribe,  and  were  of  the  most  imposing 
order,  and  were  witnessed  by  many  whites,  as  well  as  In- 
dians.    Thus  it  was  that  this  celebrated  man,  who  early 
in  life  took  on  the  ambitions  of  white  men  and  resolved  to 
become  noted,  talented  and  powerful,  as  the  fortunate  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  in  death  returned  to  and  was  claim- 
ed by  his  own  people.     I  think,  perhaps,  no  Indian  ever 
attained  to  such  eminent  distinction  as  did  Ely  S.  Parker. 
Do  the  foregoing  facts  warrant  the  claim  that  once  an  In- 
dian, always  an  Indian,  in  the  sense  that  an  Indian  may 
not  advance  and  become  distinguished,  as   famous  white 
men?     We  think  not,     we  should  hope  not.    But  with  all 
the  education  you  may  lavish  upon  him,  I  doubt  if  his  idol- 
atrous instincts  and  early  traditions  of  his  race  ever  leave 
him.     But  this  is  not  all.     General  Ely  S.  Parker  frater- 
nized with  the  white  man  in  another  field  than  that  of  sol- 
dier and  comradeship.     He  was  the  first  Worshipful  Mas- 
ter of  Miners  Lodge  No.  273,  Ancient,  Free  and  Accepted 
Masons;  also  a  member  of  Jo  Daviess  Chapter,  No.  51, 
Royal  Arch  Masons;  also  a  member  of  Ely  S.  Parker  Coun- 
cil, No.  GO,  Royal  and  Select  Masters  (named  in  honor  of 
him),  and  Galena  Commandery,  No.  40  Knights  Templar, 
all  located  at  Galena,  Illinois,  and  retained  his  membership 
in  each  until  his  death.     Gen.  Parker  was  an  intimate  friend 
of  Louis  H.  Morgan,  the  Ethnologist,  and  was  his  efficient 
co-worker  in  preparing  the  ''League  of  the  Iroquois  in  the 
year  1851."     The  value  and  recognized  instructive  features 
of  this  book  were  due  to  Parker,  as  well  as  to  Morgan. 
The  Senecas  were  the  most  populous,  powerful  and  influ- 
ential of  the  tribes  of  the  six  nations  of  New  York  during 
the  demon  like  ferocities  that  prevailed  among  the  savage 

90 


races  of  the  Eastern  United  States  and  Canada  for  nearly 
seventy-five  years.  They  were  more  progressive  than  the 
average  tribe  in  much  that  tends  to  build  up  civilization. 

Parker,  although  away  from  his  tribe  to  become  in  his 
fondest  dream  as  a  white  man,  never  forgot  his  people, 
and  often  visited  them. 

He  had  full  knowledge  of  their  institutions  and  their 
needs.  Having  such  knowledge  and  as  a  man  of  'educa- 
tion, he  had  both  the  interest  and  ability  to  make  those  in- 
stitutions known  to  the  civilized  world,  as  no  ordinary  in- 
terpreter could  have  done.  What  a  remarkable  career,  what 
a  remarkable  ending!  Who  can  show  as  great  and  com- 
mendable record  for  the  Indian  character  as  that  of  Gen. 
Ely  S.  Parker?  Millions  upon  millions  of  the  Anglo  Sax- 
on race  cannot,  although  they  may  not  worship  the  "Great 
Spirit"  or  cling  to  the  traditions  of  their  remotest  ances- 
tors. 


DOES   GOD   AID   COMBATANTS   IN   WAR? 

By   The   Author 

\^VER  since  old  Joshua,  at  the  claimed  sanction  of  the 
<^*)    Lord,  commanded  the  sun  to  stand  still  upon  Gideon 

and  the  moon  in  the  Valley  of  Ajalon,  thus  giving  him 
time  to  finish  the  slaughter  of  his  enemies,  the  Amorites, 
Monarchs  have  been  persuaded  to  believe  that  God  gives 
them  support  in  time  of  war. 

The  Joshua  account  says  "that  the  sun  hasted  not  to 
go  down  for  about  a  whole  day." 

It  is  evident  that  if  Joshua  had  been  learned  in  the 
science  of  astronomy  he  would  have  commanded  the  earth 
to  stop  its  diurnal  motion. 

91 


Joshua  in  his  great  anxiety  to  be  victorious  and  des- 
troy the  lives  of  his  enemies,  may  have  believed  the  Lord 
obeyed  his  commands — that  they  did  stand  still  or  the 
earth  stop  its  motion,  for  such  dastardly  work,  thus  con- 
travening the  laws  of  the  movements  of  celestial  bodies, 
no  intelligent,  sane  person  in  this  time  believes.  History 
must  reckon  with  the  facts  as  they  are,  which  have  been 
written  in  disgraceful  letters  of  blood  from  the  earliest 
periods  of  the  human  race.  Joshua  believed  as  emperors 
and  kings  at  this  time  believe  that  Almighty  God  answers 
the  prayers  and  obeys  the  behests  of  the  captain  of  the 
hosts  in  battle. 

The  children  of  Isreal  were  zealous  in  their  faith,  that 
the  Lord  was  with  them  in  their  onslaughts  against  their 
enemies.  In  the  biblical  account  we  find  such  or  similar  ex- 
pressions as  these.  "The  Lord  mighty  in  battle";  "the  Lord 
will  help  us  smite  our  enemies" ;  "God  will  fight  on  the  side 
of  Israel" ;  "the  Lord  delivered  our  enemies  into  the  hands 
of  Israel."  "The  Lord  your  God,  He  is  it  that  fighteth  for 
you ;  the  Lord  hath  driven  out  before  you  great  nations  and 
strong."  But  it  seems  that  in  several  of  their  contests  God 
failed  them — the  Philistines  fought  against  them  and  rout- 
ed them.  Also  in  the  year  of  the  world  3405  Nebuchad- 
nezzar, King  of  Babylon,  captured  Jerusalem  and  its  king 
after  terrible  carnage,  took  many  thousand  prisoners  and 
large  spoils  of  war.  In  some  of  the  defeats  of  the  Israe- 
lites the  accounts  say  that  God  allowed  their  foes  to  chas- 
tise them  because  of  their  sins. 

The  contention  that  "the  law  of  might  makes  right" 
has  resulted  in  the  crushing  of  many  weak,  though  useful 
and  peaceable  nations.  The  doctrine  of  "the  Divine  Right 
of  Kings"  along  with  the  idea  that  God  mixes  in  battles,  or 

92 


takes  part  in  the  jealous  disputes  of  men  and  nations  has 
long  since  exploded.  It  had  its  origin  in  the  desire  for  us- 
urpation of  power,  the  love  of  conquest  and  the  brutal  in- 
stinct of  man  for  killing  his  fellow  men.  It  is  sacrilegious 
to  place  God  on  the  side  of  any  country,  which  thinks  it  has 
been  wronged,  and  expects  that  He  will  assist  in  righting 
the  alleged  wrong  in  battle. 

It  can  scarcely  be  contended  that  when  two  dogs  dis- 
pute over  a  bone,  and  it  results  in  a  fight,  that  God  allies 
himself  with  either  canine.  Then  why  should  God  be  on 
the  side  of  men,  who  are  more  brutal  than  dogs,  in  slash- 
ing each  other's  throats  in  mortal  combat,  and  after  the 
smoke  of  battle  has  cleared  away  boast  of  the  number  of 
their  victims.  If  God  looks  upon  the  scenes  of  butchery, 
devastation,  sadness,  wretchedness,  misery  and  all  the  hor- 
ors  of  war  as  seen  in  Europe,  it  would  be  both  incom- 
prehensible and  silly  to  insist  or  expect  that  he  desired  to 
cast  his  mighty  power  on  the  side  of  either  ruler  or  nation 
in  that  great  combat.  If  God  is  all-wise,  all  gracious,  all 
powerful,  and  controls  the  destinies  of  nations  in  their 
strifes  for  expansion  and  power  He  would  have  put  a 
stop  to  that  accursed  and  most  disgraceful  war  that  has 
ever  devastated  Europe.  If  He  is  the  possessor  of  the 
attributes,  above  named.  He  could  interpose  to  prevent  war 
and  save  the  lives  of  millions  of  good,  conscientious  men. 
But  all  such  arguments  fail  because  of  the  erroneous  con- 
ception of  what  God  is,  or  in  the  nature  of  things,  what 
He  cannot  be,  and  the  part  He  plays  in  our  great  and  won- 
derful universe. 

Napoleon  was  seemingly  convinced  that  God  was  on 
his  side,  when  his  mighty  armies  shook  the  earth  and  the 
notables  of  Europe  were  trembling  at  his  feet.     But  on  the 


J 8th  day  of  June,  A.  D.  1815,  at  the  crimsoned  field  of 
Waterloo,  God  deserted  him,  and  in  his  solitude  on  the  is- 
land of  St.  Helena,  he  had  ample  time  to  think  over  his 
errors  and  misdeeds  and  soften  his  murderous  heart — as 
a  man  of  real  destiny  God  was  not  with  him,  neither  is 
He  with  any  other  would  be  man  of  destiny.  The  ma- 
chinery of  this  universe  is  too  vast  and  its  workings  too 
charming  for  an  all-wise  and  loving  God  to  leave  its  steer- 
ing wheel  even  for  the  fraction  of  a  second  to  help  any  na- 
tion in  a  silly  and  inexcusable  war. 

Whatever  our  opinions  may  be  of  the  supreme  grand 
architect  of  the  mystic  world;  the  divine  power;  the  omni- 
potent influence,  the  infinite  intelligence,  or  that  wonder- 
ful and  mysterious  force  in  nature  under  any  other  name, 
it  is  never  exerted  to  suit  the  whims  or  prayers  of  men 
in  unprovoked  bloody  work. 

God  or  the  divine  power  moves  in  a  mysterious  way, 
His  wonders  to  perform — but  the  operations  of  all  the 
forces  of  the  universe  are  in  accordance  with  natural  laws 
and  never  otherwise.  Almighty  God,  so  to  speak,  has 
nothing  to  do  with  the  wicked  instincts  of  or  foolish  con- 
tentions of  men.  So  long  as  kings  and  potentates  cling  to 
the  belief  that  God  will  aid  them  when  called  upon  in  their 
desperate  struggles  for  supremacy,  just  so  long  will  wars 
continue  to  drench  the  earth  with  blood.  If  the  time  ever 
comes  when  swords  shall  be  beaten  into  plowshares,  and 
spears  into  prunning  hooks  and  the  nations  shall  practice 
wars  no  more  (now  the  greatest  and  most  laudable  desid- 
eratum throughout  the  world)  it  will  be  accomplished 
from  an  adherence  to  the  teachings  of  the  meek  and  lowly 
Nazarene  who  proclaimed  peace  on  earth  and  good  will 
to  men. 

94 


PEACE  OR  WAR 
(By  the  Author) 

Any  movement  looking  to  a  lasting  peace  among  the 
nations  of  the  earth,  ought  to  be  encouraged  by  every  lover 
of  peace  and  deprecator  of  war. 

The  universal  depression  now  existing  in  the  business 
and  agricultural  marts  of  the  world  argues  forcibly  and 
pleadingly  for  a  perpetual  Peace  Conference  or  League  of 
Nations. 

All  the  nations  of  the  earth  are  looking  to  the  United 
States  for  advice,  relief,  and  the  future  avoidance  of  wars. 
Therefore,  if  the  United  States  should  join  the  League  of 
Nations,  this  action  on  her  part  would  be  a  sufficient  guar- 
antee of  permanent  peace  among  them.  In  such  an  event 
she  would  become  the  leading  factor  in  the  League. 

As  the  recent  European  War  was  world  wide,  so 
there  should  be  a  world  wide  Peace  Conference  or  League, 
arising  from  the  smoke  of  the  conflict  to  prevent  its  re- 
currence. 

The  U.  S.  should  join  the  League  for  the  reason  that 
by  so  doing,  she  would  dictate,  manage  and  control  the 
markets  of  the  world,  and  this  is  an  important  question  for 
the  farmers  of  the  country  to  consider.  Likewise,  such 
action  on  her  part  would  undoubtedly  result  in  her  con- 
trolling the  financial  interests  of  the  world. 

If  the  rights  and  claims  for  the  Four-Power  Treaty 
are  correct  and  beneficial,  so  likewise,  the  principles 
•evolved  in  the  League  of  Nations  are  correct  and  beneficial 
to  humanity. 

95 


It  is  fair  to  presume  that  if  the  United  States  and  two 
of  the  leading  nations  of  Europe  had  cast  their  fortunes 
with  the  League  of  Nations,  the  economical  and  financial 
questions  now  under  discussion  by  the  European  powers, 
would  in  a  great  measure  at  least  have  been  quieted  and 
settled,  favorably  and  satisfactorily,  to  all  the  nations  there 
concerned. 

Probably  the  greatest  and  most  absorbing  thought  be- 
fore the  peoples  of  the  civilized  nations  of  today,  is  that 
of  the  subject  of  peace,  or  the  avoidance  of  wars  among 
nations  of  the  earth. 

As  one  who  earnestly  gave  thought  to  this  subject,  T 
was  in  favor  of  the  ratification  by  the  United  States  Senate 
of  Treaty  of  Versailles  and  the  League  of  Nations.  Nations 
like  individuals  are  not  infallible  in  their  decisions  and 
judgments,  and  I  firmly  believe  that  this  government  of 
ours,  as  represented  by  the  United  States  Senate  made  a 
grievous  error  in  defeating  ratification  of  that  treaty  and 
league  submitted  to  them  for  approval  by  President  Wil- 
son. I  think  it  would  have  been  conducive  of  a  better 
understanding  among  the  leading  nations  of  the  world,  and 
arbitration  and  mutual  discussion  of  disputes  would  have 
taken  the  place  of  hasty  and  ill-advised  declarations  of 
war. 

A  court  of  the  leading  nations,  meeting  regularly,  in 
my  judgment,  would  have  obtained  only  justice  and  right 
for  themselves  and  not  have  dared  to  do  otherwise  by  the 
smaller  and  weaker  nations. 

The  danger  of  future  wars  certainly  would  have  been 
lessened  and  not  enhanced  by  the  operations  of  such  a 
league. 

But  the  United  States  Senate  did  not  see  fit  to  ratify, 

96 


and  as  a  substitute,  forced  by  necessity,  the  Four  Power 
Treaty  has  come  into  being.  I  am  heartily  in  accord  with 
this  pact,  and  the  administration  of  President  Harding  will 
doubtless  be  remembered  by  generations  to  come  for  this 
notable  achievement  in  diplomacy  and  peace  attainment, 
when  other  measures  of  its  time  have  long  been  forgotten. 

There  should  be  no  partisanship  in  matters  so  fraught 
with  human  interest  and  I  pride  myself  in  being  a  citizen 
first  and  partisan  afterwards. 

One  of  the  greatest  curses  in  the  United  States  today 
is  the  resort  to  petty  politics,  and  the  utter  disregard  of 
wholesome  pledges  and  promised  acts  on  the  part  of  would- 
be  statesmen. 

By  reason  of  the  foregoing  statements  and  conclusions, 
I  heartily  'endorse  the  so-called  Four  Power  Treaty  and  the 
League  of  Nations. 

The  United  States  got  mixed  up  in  the  European  War 
by  reason  of  repeated  outrages  upon  our  citizens  and  com- 
merce, and  at  no  time  during  the  same  was  she  imbued  with 
the  spirit  of  gain  or  conquest,  or  sought  remuneration  for 
her  great  outlays.  She  also  fought  to  make  the  principles 
of  democracy  safe  for  the  world.  The  fact  that  in  her 
action  she  was  actuated  with  no  selfish  motives,  places  her 
as  the  guiding  star  in  the  galaxy  of  nations  to  prevent  greed, 
conquest  and  fiendish  bloodshed  and  to  restore  lasting, 
amicable  relations  among  the  nations  of  the  earth. 


97 


SOME    REFLECTIONS     BY    THE    AUTHOR. 

Christianity  is  not  founded  on  supposed  miracles,  or 
the  Crucifixion,  but  upon  the  pure  principles  and  correct 
teachings  of  Jesus. 

The  most  important  religious  question  of  the  age  is — 
"If  a  man  die,  shall  he  live  again?" 

We  should  not  dispute  with  people  on  religious  matters 
because  religion  is  a  sacred  thing.  Beliefs  may  or  may 
not  be  erroneous,  yet  it  is  not  wise  for  us  to  set  up  our 
standard  of  faith  and  argument  as  the  correct  one. 

I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  such  a  thing  as  a  miracle. 
Things  which  seem  miraculous  are  easily  explained  under 
the  operation  of  natural  and  physical  laws,  or  the  law  of 
cause  and  effect. 

We  do  not  go  to  Heaven.  Heaven  comes  to  us  if  we 
want  it. 

The  more  people  economise,  the  less  the  danger  of 
panics.  A  reckless  credit  system  is  the  sure  precursor  for 
ruin  to  those  who  adopt  it. 

The  mixing  of  languages,  like  the  confusion  of  ton- 
gues, is  harmful  to  the  Government  and  the  people.  There- 
fore, all  languages,  other  than  the  standard  language  of  the 
country,  except  in  the  use  of  the  Postal  Service,  etc.,  ought 
to  be  abolished,  and  never  revived,  except  in  cases  of  emer- 
gency, and  then  only  by  special  act  of  Legislation. 


to 

98 


Quarrels  between  individuals,  as  between  nations,  of- 
ten are  the  result  of  misunderstandings  of  the  true  rela- 
tions of  each  to  the  other. 

The  desire  of  war  and  conquest  is  an  ambitious  craze 
which  has  deprived  kings,  emperors,  and  imbecile  rulers  of 
their  thrones. 

The  Scriptural  definition  of  religion  is  a  good  one, 
viz :  "True  and  undefiled  religion  before  God  and 
man,  is  to  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  afflic- 
tions, and  keep  one's  self  unspotted  from  the  world." 

In  speaking  of  religion,  Lincoln  said,  "When  I  do 
good,  I  feel  good ;  and  when  I  do  bad,  I  feel  bad,  and  that 
is  my  religion." 

The  stability  of  any  nation  is  made  more  secure  by  the 
purity  of  its  citizenship. 

Disraeli  of  England  said  "War  is  never  a  solution;  it 
is  always  an  aggravation." 

I  believe  that  all  the  peoples  of  the  earth  are  looking 
forward  to  the  near  solution  of  a  prophesy,  which  says : 
''Our  swords  shall  be  beaten  into  plowshares,  and  our  spears 
into  pruning  hooks,  and  the  nations  shall  practice  war  no 
more." 


99 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


Dedication  Lincoln  Trail 
Monument 


r~ 


1 


LINCOLN  TRAIL  MARKER 

McLEAN-WOODFORD  COUNTY  LINE 


DEDICATION  OF  THE  LINCOLN  TRAIL  MONUMENT. 


Dedication  of  Lincoln  Trail  Monument,  on  the  line 
between  McLean  and  Woodford  Counties,  two  miles  north 
of  Carlock,  on  the  farm  of  W.  B.  Carlock,  July  11,  1923. 

12  M.  picnic  dinner  in  Walnut  Grove. 

Presidents  for  the  occasion,  Mrs.  J.  W.  Riggs,  Direc- 
tor of  L.  C.  M.  A.  for  McLean  County,  and  L.  J. 
Freese,  Director,  L.  C.  M.  A.,  for  Woodford  County  and 
too  much  praise  cannot  be  accorded  them  for  the  efficient 
and  courteous  manner  in  which  they  performed  their  duties. 

During  the  exercises,  Miss  Gladys  Sims  of  Pontiac 
sang  several  patriotic  selections  in  a  charming  and  impres- 
sive manner. 

2  P.  M.  Called  to  order  in  the  grove,  song,  "America" 
by  the  audience. 

Invocation,  Rev.  Jesse  Moore. 

A  fine  Recital  Apostrophe  to  the  Flag,  by  Miss  Ruby 
Painter  of  Eureka. 

"Hail  to  thee,  flag  of  our  fathers,  flag  of  the  free! 
With  pride  and  loyalty  and  love  we  greet  thee,  and  prom- 
ise to  cherish  thee  forever.  How  wonderful  has  been  thy 
onward  progress  of  conquest  through  the  years.  How 
marvelous  the  triumph  of  thy  followers  over  the  vicis- 
situdes of  fortune  that  met  them  on  their  way!  Daring 
men  have  reverently  placed  thee  on  the  icy  crags  of  the 

1C3 


frozen  north,  and  have  as  reverently  stationed  thee  on  the 
cloud  swept  wastes  of  the  far-off  frozen  south.  They  have 
followed  thee  in  willing  service  over  the  wastes  of  every 
ocean,  into  the  depths  of  the  impenetrable  blue.  Stal- 
wart, stronghearted  men  have  willingly  laid  down  their 
lives  at  thy  command  to  guard  the  outposts  of  freedom. 
Millions  of  men,  women  and  children  have  stood  at  atten- 
tion, listening  for  the  first  sound  of  thy  call,  willing  to 
give  all  they  have,  if  need  be  in  thy  defense.  Thousands 
on  thousands  of  our  bravest  and  our  best  followed  thee 
across  the  seas  for  the  glorious  privilege  of  defending  the 
weak  and  the  helpless. 

Our  flag!  It  has  long  been  known  as  the  emblem  of 
strength  and  power.  Yet  stricken  nations  of  the  earth 
have  learned  sweeter  attributes :  they  have  received  kindly 
sympathy,  loving  service,  generous  helpfulness.  For  these 
gifts  thou  art  welcome  throughout  the1  world. 

Glorious  and  beautiful  is  the  flag  of  our  fathers,  the 
Star  Spangled  Banner — beautiful  in  its  own  waving  folds, 
glorious  in  the  memory  of  the  brave  deeds  of  those  who 
chose  it  for  their  standard,  but  more  beautiful,  more  glor- 
ious will  be  the  nation  which  has  inherited  their  land  and 
their  flag — more  if  we  who  boast  our  lineage  from  those 
heroes  gone — if  we  inherit  not  alone  their  name,  their 
blood,  their  banner,  but  their  nobler  part,  their  spirit, 
their  love  of  liberty,  their  devotion  to  justice,  their  inflex- 
ible pursuance  of  righteousness  and  truth. 

Most  beautiful  and  most  glorious,  shalt  thou  be  O 
flag,  as  the  messenger  of  such  a  nation,  bearing  to  the  ends 
of  the  earth  glad  tidings  of  the  joy  and  the  glory  and 
the  happiness  of  a  people  where  freedom  shall  be  linked 
with  justice,  liberty  restrained  by  law,  and  where  "peace 

104 


on  earth  good  will  to  men"  shall  be  the  living  creed. 

Press  on,  press  on,  O  glorious  banner,  bearing  this 
message  to  all  the  peoples — 

''Our  hearts,  our  hopes,  are  all  with  thee — 

Our  hearts,  our  hopes,  our  prayers,  our  tears ; 

Our  faith,  triumphant  o'er  our  fears, 

Are  all  with  thee,  are  all  with  thee." 


Salute  to  the  Flag,  audience,  led  by    Mrs.    Charles 
Herrick,  Chicago,  State  Regent,  D.  A.  R. 


Introductory  address  paying  a  justly  merited  tribute 
to  the  world  renowned  American  as  follows,  by  Judge 
Franklin  H.  Boggs,  Urbana,  Illinois,  President  L.  C.  M.  A. 
Mr.  Chairman,  State  Regent    of    the    Daughters    of    the 

American  Revolution,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

We  all  know  it  is  a  matter  of  tremendous  importance 
that  a  nation  shall  have  back  of  it  a  great  history.  It  stead- 
ies the  life  of  the  present,  elevates  and  up-holds,  lightens 
and  lifts  it  up  by  the  memory  of  the  great  deeds,  the  noble 
sufferings  and  the  valiant  achievements  of  its  men  of  old. 

We  are  met  today  on  this  historic  spot  to  do  honor 
to  one  of  the  great  characters  in  American  History.  In 
the  brief  space  of  time  allotted  me,  I  have  felt  I  might  best 
use  the  same  by  giving  you  an  insight  into  the  character  of 
President  Lincoln  by  quoting  characteristic  statements 
made  by  him  at  different  periods  in  his  eventful  history 
making  career. 

First  of  all,  Mr.  Lincoln  held  in  tender  reverence  the 
memory  of  his  mother.  While  he  was  only  nine  years  of 
age  at  the  time  of  her  death,  yet  the  impression  made  on 
his  young  life  by  his  mother  were  never  effaced.     Refer- 

105 


ring  thereto  he  said :  "All  that  I  am  and  all  that  I  ever  hope 
to  be  I  owe  to  my  angel  mother." 

Then,  too,  Mr.  Lincoln  recognized  the  guiding  hand 
of  Providence  in  the  performance  of  his  duties  as  the  chief 
executive  of  the  nation.  This  was  clearly  exemplified  in 
the  address  made  by  him  to  his  friends  and  fellow  citizens 
in  Springfield  as  he  was  leaving  for  Washington  for  his 
inauguration  as  President.  Among  others,  this  he  said: 
"Friends,  I,  go  to  assume  a  task  more  difficult  than  de- 
volved on  President  Washington.  Unless  the  Great  God 
who  assisted  him  shall  be  with  me,  and  aid  me,  I  shall  fail, 
but  if  the  great  omnicient  mind  and  Almighty  arm  that  di- 
rected and  protected  him;  shall  guide  and  support  me,  I 
shall  not  fail,  I  shall  succeed. 

As  illustrating  the  political  wisdom  and  statesmanship 
of  Mr.  Lincoln  and  his  ability  to  foresee  the  logical  re- 
sults of  slavery  on  the  national  existence,  I  want  to  quote 
from  his  address  known  as,  "A  House  Divided  Against 
Itself,"  made  in  1858  accepting  the  nomination  for  United 
States  Senator.  "A  house  divided  against  itself  cannot 
stand.  I  do  not  believe  this  Government  can  permanently 
endure  half  slave  and  half  free.  I  do  not  expect  the  Union 
to  be  disolved. — I  do  not  expect  the  house  to  fall, — but 
I  do  expect  that  it  shall  cease  to  be  divided." 

The  advisability  of  making  the  "House  Divided" 
speech  was  questioned  by  some  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  friends 
and  they  advised  against  making  it.  Mr.  Lincoln  replied : 
"The  time  has  come  when  these  sentiments  should  be  ut- 
tered, and,  if  it  is  decreed  that  I  should  go  down  because  of 
this  speech,  then  let  me  go  down  linked  with  the'truth." 

Another  phase  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  character  which  is 
tremendously  interesting,  in  view  of  the  fact  that  he  was 

106 


born    in    obscurity,    of    humble    parentage    and    had    in 
actual  school  privileges  less  than  one  year,  was  his  ability 
to  deal  and  cope  with  the  strongest  men  of  the  nation.     In 
his  cabinet  were  Secretaries  Seward,  Chase  and  Staunton. 
They    were    men    of    education    and  learning    and    had 
had   long   time   training   in   governmental   affairs.      Two 
of  these  men  had  been  active  candidates  for  the  Presidency 
in  competition  with  Mr.  Lincoln,  and  as  it  developed,  they 
were   not   entirely   in  accord   with   his   policies  and   were 
more  or  less  jealous  of  one  another.     With  this  situation 
on  hand  there  had  arisen  in  the  Cabinet  a  movement  on 
the  part  of  certain  of  the  Cabinet  officers  to  have  one  of 
the   members   removed.      Mr.    Lincoln   learning    of    this, 
stated  in  a  Cabinet  meeting  in  connection  therewith:     '1 
must  myself  be  the  judge  of  how  long  to  retain  and  when 
to  remove  any  of  you  from  his  position.     It  would  great- 
ly pain  me  to  discover  any  of  you  endeavoring  to  procure 
another's  removal,  or  in  any  way  to  prejudice  him  before 
the  people.     Such  endeavor  would  be  a  great  wrong  to 
me  and  much  more  a  wrong  to  the  country.     My  wish  is 
on  this  subject,  that  no  remark  be  made,  nor  any  ques- 
tions be  asked  by  any  of  you  here  or  elsewhere,  now  or 
hereafter."     I  submit  that  it  takes  a  man  of  strong  in- 
tellectual mind  and  of  strong  moral  fiber  to  make  a  state- 
ment of  that  character  to  men  of  the  caliber  composing  his 
Cabinet. 

Another  phase  of  his  character  that  has  always  been 
interesting  and  one  much  discussed,  was  his  wit  and  hu- 
mor. One  or  two  illustrations  of  this  will  suffice.  On 
one  occasion  a  party  applied  to  him  for  a  pass  through  the 
lines  to  Richmond,  to  which  request  Mr.  Lincoln  replied: 
"I  would  be  glad  to  give  it  to  you,  but  my  passes  are  not 

107 


held  in  very  high  respect.  Why!  do  you  know  I  have 
already  issued  passes  to  250,000  men  to  go  to  Richmond 
and  as  yet  not  one  of  them  has  ever  arrived  there." 

On  another  occasion  a  committee  of  ministers  called 
on  Mr.  Lincoln  to  give  advice  touching  the  conduct  of 
the  war  and  among  other  things  said  to  him :  "They  hoped 
that  the  Lord  was  on  our  side."  Mr.  Lincoln  replied  in  ef- 
fect :  ''That  he  wasn't  bothered  about  which  side  the  Lord 
was  on  for  he  knew  that  would  be  the  right  side,  but  he 
was  tremendously  interested  that  we  should  be  on  the 
Lord's  side." 

As  illustrating  the  attitude  of  Mr.  Lincoln  to  the  men 
of  the  South,  who  were  threatening  to  secede  from  the 
Union,  and  the  magnanimous  spirit  which  he  manifested 
in  his  dealings  with  them,  I  would  quote  from  Mr.  Lin- 
coln's first  inaugural  address:  "In  your  hands  my  dissat- 
isfied fellow  countrymen,  and  not  in  mine,  is  the  momen- 
tous issues  of  Civil  War.  The  Government  will  not  as- 
sail you.  You  can  have  no  conflict  without  being  your- 
selves the  aggressors.  You  have  no  oath  registered  in 
heaven  to  destroy  the  Government;  while  I  shall  have 
the  most  solemn  one  to  'preserve,  protect  and  defend' 
it.  I  am  loath  to  close.  We  are  not  enemies,  but  friends. 
We  must  not  be  enemies.  Though  passion  may  have 
strained,  it  must  not  break  our  bonds  of  affection.  The 
mystic  -chord  of  memory,  stretching  from  every  battle 
field  and  hearth-stone  all  over  this  broad  land,  will  yet 
swell  the  chorus  of  the  Union  when  again  touched,  as  surely 
they  will  be,  by  the  better  angels  of  our  nature." 

It  would  seem  that  an  address  of  this  character  should 

108 


have  caused  a  thoughtful  man  of  the  South  to  have 
stopped  and  paused  before  assuming  the  responsibility  of 
disrupting  the  Union,  but  they  failed  to  heed  the  advice. 

Then  in  closing,  I  want  to  quote  from  Mr.  Lincoln's 
last  inaugural  address  in  which  he  was  seeking  to  instill 
into  the  People  of  this  Country  the  spirit  that  should  guide 
them  in  the  closing  period  of  the  War. 

"With  malice  toward  none,  with  charity  toward  all, 
with  firmness  in  the  right  as  God  gives  us  power  to  see  the 
right,  let  us  finish  the  work  we  are  in.  To  bind  up  the  Na- 
tion's wounds,  to  care  for  him  who  shall  have  borne  the 
battle,  and  for  his  widow  and  orphans.  To  do  all  which 
may  achieve  and  cherish  a  just  and  lasting  peace  among 
ourselves  and  with  all  nations. 


A  pleasing  feature  of  the  occasion  was  the  magnificent 
address  of  Governor  Fifer,  subject: — Lincoln,  the  Greatest 
Leader  in  All  History.     He  spoke  as  follows : 

Friends :  We  are  here  to  dedicate  the  simple  tablet 
which  we  see  before  us.  It  is  erected  to  mark  the  place 
where  Abraham  Lincoln  crossed  the  line  between  the  two 
counties  when  traveling  the  old  Eighth  Judicial  Circuit. 
Tradition  tells  us  that  he  sometimes  travelled  alone  but  was 
frequently  in  the  company  of  brother  lawyers. 

This  is  historic  ground  for  it  was  in  this  neighborhood 
that  Lincoln  stopped  many  times  for  rest  and  refreshments, 
both  at  the  Bensons  and  at  the  home  of  Abraham  W.  Car- 

109 


lock,  the  father  of  W.  B.  Carlock,  now  an  honored  member 
of  the  Bloomington  Bar.  Mr.  Carlock's  home  consisted  of 
a  rude  log  cabin  such  as  were  generally  seen  on  our  frontier 
at  that  time.  The  latch  string  was  always  on  the  outside, 
and  no  charge  was  ever  made  for  accommodations.  Mr. 
Lincoln  would  at  times  stop  only  long  enough  to  take  a 
single  meal,  but  many  times  be  remained  over  night  with 
Mr.  Carlock  and  was  always  a  welcome  guest.  While  dif- 
fering in  their  political  views  they  were  personal  friends 
and  Mr.  Carlock  entertained  a  high  regard  for  Mr.  Lincoln 
so  long  as  he  lived. 

Woodword  County  was  organized  by  an  act  of  the 
Gentral  Assembly  passed  in  1841.  Versailles  was  the  first 
county  seat  of  Woodford,  but  it  was  in  1843  removed  to 
Metamora,  and  the  court  house  at  that  place  was  completed 
in  1845.  In  going  and  coming  Lincoln  and  his  party 
usually  crossed  the  Mackinaw  river  at  Wyatt's  Ford,  but 
when  the  waters  were  high  they  were  ferried  over  at  Slab- 
town  or  Faneysville. 

McLean  County  was  organized  in  1830  by  an  act  of 
the  General  Assembly.  The  country  rapidly  increased  in 
population  by  reason  of  its  natural  beauty  and  the  fertility 
of  its  soil.  Bloomington,  the  county  seat,  has  grown  from 
a  small  country  village  to  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and 
prosperous  cities  in  our  state.  It  was  at  Bloomington  that 
Lincoln  loved  to  visit.  It  was  there  that  he  had  more 
friends  than  he  had  in  any  other  section  of  the  state. 
David  Davis,  Jesse  W.  Fell,  Leonard  Swett,  W.  W.  Orme, 
Hudson  Burr,  W.  H.  Hanna  and  Isaac  Funk  were  among 
his  warm  personal  and  political  friends,  and  these  men  did 
much  to  shape  and  mould  the  political  fortunes  of  the  great 
emancipator.      Jesse  W.  Fell  was  the  first  to  approach  Mr. 

no 


Lincoln  on  the  presidency.  He  obtained  from  him  a  snort 
biographical  sketch  and  scattered  it  throughout  the  east, 
which  had  much  to  do  with  Mr.  Lincoln's  first  nomination. 
Bloomington  was  the  home  of  David  Davis,  who  was  Judge 
of  the  old  Eighth  Circuit  practically  all  the  period  of  Mr. 
Lincoln's  legal  career.  Soon  after  taking  the  presidency 
Lincoln  showed  his  appreciation  of  the  great  abilities  of  Mr. 
Davis  by  appointing  him  a  member  of  the  supreme  court  of 
the  United  States,  the  greatest  judicial  body  in  the  world, 
and  it  may  be  said  that  the  wisdom  of  this  appointment  was 
abundantly  justified  by  the  career  of  Mr.  Davis  on  the 
bench,  who  proved  to  be  a  great  man  and  a  great  judge. 
Judge  Weldon.  a  stalwart  friend  of  Lincoln,  then  lived  at 
Clinton  but  afterwards  removed  to  Bloomington. 

The  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution,  under 
whose  auspices  these  exercises  are  being  held,  are  entitled 
to  the  everlasting  gratitude  of  the  good  people  of  this  coun- 
trv  for  their  great  work  in  keeping  alive  the  memories  of 
the  Revolution  which  resulted  in  establishing  free  institu- 
tions in  the  American  wilderness.  They  have  also  empha- 
sized and  kept  alive  the  most  important  political  events  of 
recent  times,  and  for  this  they  also  deserve  the  thanks  of 
our  people.  We  wish  them  well  and  hope  they  will  continue 
the  noble  work  in  which  they  are  engaged. 

This  strange  man,  whose  memory  we  honor  today, 
came  among  us,  strode  across  this  little  grain  of  sand  on 
which  we  live  and  disappeared,  leaving  the  world  dazzled 
and  amazed  at  his  great  achievements. 

When  approached  by  a  would-be  biographer  for  the 
important  facts  of  his  life  he  replied,  that  the  whole  of  it 
could  be  summed  up  in  a  single  line  of  Gray's  Elegy — "The 
short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor."      Born  down  here  in 

ill 


the  Beechwoods  of  Kentucky  with  only  three  months  school- 
ing, he  wrote  the  best  English  of  any  man  of  his  time. 
Some  of  his  writings  now  hang  in  the  great  University  of 
Cambridge,  England,  as  a  model  of  good  English.  Not 
long  ago  a  friend  of  mine  and  a  graduate  of  that  University 
told  me  that  when  on  a  visit  there  one  of  the  professors 
pointed  to  this  writing  and  said :  "There  is  the  best  English 
that  was  ever  written."  Think  of  it,  this  plain  man  of 
the  people  reared  on  the  frontier  of  this  new  land,  prac- 
tically without  schooling,  writing  English  that  is  hung  up  in 
one  of  the  great  universities  of  the  world  as  a  model  for  the 
youth  of  a  land  that  produced  Shakespeare,  Hume,  Ma- 
cauley  and  Tennyson.  The  writing  referred  to  is  a  letter 
written  to  a  mother,  living  in  Massachusetts,  who  had  lost 
five  sons  in  the  War.  Lincoln  wrote  to  her  a  letter  of  sym- 
pathy and  said : 

"Dear  Madam — 

I  have  been  shown  in  the  files  of  the  War  Department 
a  statement  of  the  Adjutant  General  of  Massachusetts  that 
you  are  the  mother  of  five  sons  who  have  died  gloriously 
on  the  field  of  battle.  I  know  how  weak  and  fruitless  any 
words  of  mine  should  be  which  would  attempt  to  mitigate 
the  grief  of  a  loss  so  overwhelming.  But  I  cannot  refrain 
from  tendering  to  vou  the  consolation  that  may  be  found  in 
the  thanks  of  the  Republic  they  died  to  save.  I  pray  that 
our  Heavenly  Father  may  assuage  the  anguish  of  your  be- 
reavement and  leave  you  only  the  cherished  memory  of 
the  loved  and  lost  and  the  solemn  pride  that  must  be  yours 
to  have  laid  so  costly  a  sacrifice  on  the  Altar  of  Freedom." 

In  the  closing  words  of  his  second  inaugural  we  are 
given  a  clear  insight  into  the  real  character  of  the  man. 
These  words  do  honor  both  to  his  head  and  his  heart : 

112 


"Earnestly  do  we  hope;  fervently  do  we  pray  that  this 
mighty  scourge  of  war  may  speedily  pass  away.  But  if  it 
be  God's  will  that  it  continue  until  the  wealth  piled  by  the 
bondsmen's  two  hundred  fifty  years  of  unrequited  toil  is 
sunk,  and  until  every  drop  of  blood  drawn  by  the  lash  is 
repaid  by  another  drawn  by  the  sword,  as  was  said  three 
thousand  vears  ago.  still  it  must  be  said  that  the  judgments 
of  the  Lord  are  true  and  righteous  all  together." 

Mr.  Lincoln's  lasting  fame,  however,  will  not  rest  alone 
upon  the  fact  that  he  wrote  good  English.  He  was  a  sure- 
footed, clear-headed  statesman  and  the  greatest  leader  of 
men  that  the  world  has  ever  known.  As  he  lay  on  his 
bloody  bier  Secretary  Staunton  pointed  to  him  and  truth- 
fully said :  ''There  lies  the  greatest  leader  of  men  that  ever 
lived."  It  was  these  qualities  in  Mr.  Lincoln  that  enabled 
him  to  save  the  American  L'nion. 

The  two  greatest  events  in  our  history  are  the  Ameri- 
can Revolution  and  the  Great  Civil  War.  The  first  gave 
us  our  free  institutions.  In  the  second  it  was  demon- 
strated that  these  institutions  could  be  successfully  defended 
and  preserved.  The  Revolution  was  a  new  experiment  in 
government  and  we  might  know  that  in  its  success  some 
names  would  be  sent  to  the  Pantheon  of  Fame  and  so  we 
have  Washington.  Hamilton.  Jefferson.  Marshall  and  the 
rest.  For  nearly  a  hundred  years  after  that  period  we 
prospered  a<=  no  nation  had  ever  prospered  before.  We 
grew  in  population  and  we  grew  in  wealth  beyond  the 
dream  of  avarice.  Finally,  however,  in  1861  we  were 
called  up  as  a  nation  before  the  Judgment  Bar  of  the  Al- 
mighty and  our  free  institutions  went  on  trial  before  the 
civilized  opinion  of  mankind.  It  was  indeed  a  supreme 
crisis,  for  if  this  free  government  failed  what  others  could 


11: 


ever  hope  to  endure.  This  was  the  darkest  hour  our  na- 
tion ever  saw.  At  first  our  armies  were  repeatedly  driven 
back  in  defeat  and  disaster,  and  at  this  time  we  were  paying 
seven  per  cent  on  our  bonds.  As  Lincoln  surveyed  the  sit- 
uation he  truthfully  exclaimed:  "The  occasion  is  indeed 
piled  high  with  difficulty."  And  so  it  was,  but  through 
the  wise  leadership  and  assisted  by  the  brave  boys  in  blue 
our  Union  was  saved,  and  so  the  name  of  Abraham  Lincoln, 
with  others  of  that  period  was  sent  to  the  Pantheon. 

I  am  glad  that  I  knew  and  heard  this  great  man.  As 
we  contemplate  his  life  we  do  not  wonder  that  more  has 
been  written  and  said  of  him  than  was  ever  written  or  said 
of  any  man  that  ever  lived.  His  speeches  and  writings 
have  been  translated  into  all  the  languages  of  the  world, 
and  he  is  justly  regarded  by  the  people  of  all  lands  as  the 
greatest  exponent  of  democracy  the  world  has  yet  pro- 
duced. No  incident  of  his  life  should  be  lost  to  posterity. 
His  pure  exalted  and  unselfish  life  will  help  teach  the  world 
the  great  lesson  that  the  basis,  the  indispensable  basis,  of  all 
true  greatness  is  integrity  of  character  and  that  without  it 
all  our  seeming  successes  will  in  the  end  turn  to  ashes  in  our 
hands.  He,  in  his  solitary  greatness,  walked  alone  and  com- 
muned with  himself.  He  stood  unawed  in  the  presence  of 
great  men.  He  cared  nothing  for  great  wealth  and  his  ex- 
ample is  a  rebuke  to  the  fierce  commercialism  of  our  age. 
The  church  and  the  school,  however,  are  doing  their 
beneficent  work,  which  gives  some  hope  of  a  better  day  to 
come. 

Lowell  has  sung  of  him : 
"Nature  they  say,  doth  dote 
And  cannot  make  a  man 

114 


Save  on  some  worn-out  plan. 

Repeating  us  by  rote; 

For  him  her  Old  World  moulds  aside  she  threw, 

And,  choosing  sweet  clay  from  the  breast, 

Of  the  unexhausted  West, 

With  stuff  untainted  shaped  a  hero  new, 

Wise,  steadfast  in  the  strength  of  God,  and  true. 

New  birth  of  our  new  soil,  the  first  American." 


Address,  Reminiscenses  of  Lincoln,  by  Prof.  B.  J. 
Radford,  Eureka. 

Prof.  Radford  is  now  eighty  five  years  of  age,  and 
was  six  years  old  when  he  first  saw  Lincoln,  and  met  with 
him  frequently  thereafter  in  his  attendance  at  Court  at 
Metamora.  At  the  age  of  twenty  years  he  said,  he  at- 
tended the  joint  discussion  between  Lincoln  and  Douglas 
on  October  7,  1858  at  Galesburg.  His  recollection  of  that 
memorable  event  was  very  vivid.  He  recounted  the  an- 
ecdotes and  stories  which  Lincoln  told  at  the  Hotel  in  Met- 
amora, where  the  lawyers  would  congregate  in  the  even- 
ing, and  there  gathered  such  men  as  Judge,  Samuel  H. 
Treat,  Asahel  Gridley,  Stephen  Logan,  David  Davis  and 
others  who  became  known  all  over  the  country.  The  ad- 
dress was  a  most  interesting  one  throughout,  and  the  /vu- 
thor  is  sorry  to  say  that  he  was  unable  to  secure  same  in 
full  for  publication. 


Address,  including  a  recital  of  Lincoln's  famous  Get- 
tysburg speech,  by  W.  B.  Carlock. 

Madam  President,  Neighbors  and  Friends: 
The  first  Circuit  Court  in  Woodford  County  was  held 
at   Versailles,    September   24,    1841.      Mr.    Lincoln,    then 

115 


unknown  to  fame,  and  without  a  unique  history,  was  pres- 
ent and  participated  in  the  business  of  the  Court. 

At  the  April  term,  1842,  he  tried  on  behalf  of  the 
defendant,  the  first  criminal  case  appearing  on  the  dockets 
of  the  Court.  Hon.  Samuel  H.  Treat  was  the  presiding 
judge.  Lincoln  on  his  trips  to  attend  said  terms  of  Court 
enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  my  parents  in  their  log  cabin 
home,  which  stood  a  short  distance  southeast  of  the  present 
homestead  dwelling.  He  was  a  frequent  guest  of  my 
father  for  several  years  thereafter.  My  friends,  we 
have  witnessed  with  loving  appreciation  the  impressive 
ceremonies  attending  the  dedication  of  yonder  monument. 
It  has  been  erected  in  memory  of  the  greatest  man,  perhaps, 
that  has  ever  been  given  to  the  world  in  the  cause  of  human 
freedom  and  the  sacredness  of  the  natural,  inherent  and  in- 
alienable rights  of  man.  The  name  of  the  great  com- 
moner, Abraham  Lincoln,  will  be  lauded  by  the  generations 
which  are  to  follow  us  and  these;  will  build  and  occupy,  but 
we  will  not  be  here.  Yet  the  spirit  of  the  immortal  Lin- 
coln will  continue,  as  the  ages  decay,  to  live  with  love  and 
praise*  in  the  hearts  of  all  the  peoples  of  this  earth,  because 
of  his  commendable  deeds  in  behalf  of  humanity. 

Lincoln's  largeness  of  heart,  his  gentle  simplicity,  his 
lovable  democratic  demeanor  and  his  dogged  determination 
ever  to  do  the  right,  without  fear  or  favor,  appealed  to  the 
admiration  of  mankind.  In  his  heart  there  was  no  malice. 
While  at  the  head  of  our  great  nation  in  the  dark  hours  of 
her  troubles,  he  pleaded  "charity  for  all  and  malice  towards 
none."  And  these  noble  impulses  of  his  heart  were  em- 
bodied in  his  last  inaugural  address.  And  when 
fanatics  importuned  him  to  resort  to  revengeful  tactics 
against  certain  prisoners,  he  rebuked  them  by  saying:  "I 

116 


shall  do  no  malice.     The  things  that  I  do  are  too  vast  for 
malicious  dealing." 

The  time  may  come  when  another  grave  crisis  will 
arise  in  our  history,  bringing  forth  an  inspired  American,  as 
great,  good  and  grand  as  the  one  whose  virtues  we  here 
commemorate.  If  so,  the  world  will  again  look  on  and 
marvel  and  the  people  of  all  lands  will  rise  up  with  exulta- 
tion and  praise  and  call  him  blessed,  as  they  did  the  Saviour 
of  our  country,  the  man  of  destiny,  Abraham  Lincoln. 

GETTYSBURG 

The  battle  of  Gettysburg  was  fought  on  the  first,  sec- 
ond and  third  days  of  July,  18G3,  and  was  the  most  desper- 
ate and  bloody  of  the  Civil  War.  The  Union  Army  was 
commanded  by  General  George  G.  Meade,  while  the  invad- 
ing Confederate  forces  were  led  by  General  Robert  E.  ivee. 
In  this  gigantic  struggle  Cemetery  Hill  was  occupied,  de- 
fended and  held  to  the  end  of  the  fight  by  the  center  of 
Meade's  Army.  Here  on  the  19th  day  of  November, 
1863,  occurred  the  dedication  of  the  National  Cemetery  in 
honor  and  memory  of  the  Federal  dead  who  fell  in  that 
great  battle. 

Edward  Everett,  a  Unitarian  minister  and  popular 
orator  of  the  City  of  Boston,  delivered  the  oration,  speak- 
ing about  two  hours.  The  great  Lincoln  was  present  to 
hear  it,  and  incidentally  to  make  a  short  talk,  if  he  so  de- 
sired. He  did  make  a  talk  and  now  nearly  all  students  of 
American  history  know  it  by  heart.  I  will  now  give  a  re- 
cital of  his  famous  Gettysburg  speech: 

"Fourscore  and  seven  years  ago  our  fathers  brought 
forth  on  this  continent  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  liberty 
and  dedicated  to  the  proposition  that  all  men  are  created 
equal.       Now  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  Civil  War,  test- 

117 


ing  whether  that  nation,  or  any  nation  so  conceived  and  so 
dedicated  can  long  endure.  We  are  met  on  a  great  battle- 
field of  that  war.  We  have  come  to  dedicate  a  portion  of 
that  field  as  a  final  resting  place  for  those  who  here  gave 
their  lives  that  that  nation  might  live.  It  is  altogether  fit- 
ting and  proper  that  we  should  do  this.  But  in  a  larger 
sense,  we  cannot  dedicate,  we  cannot  consecrate,  we  cannot 
hallow  this  ground.  The  brave  men,  living  and  dead,  who 
struggled  here  have  consecrated  it  far  above  our  poor  power 
to  add  or  detract.  The  world  will  little  note  nor  long  re- 
member what  we  say  here,  but  it  can  never  forget  what  they 
did  here.  It  is  for  us,  the  living,  rather  to  be  dedicated  here 
to  the  unfinished  work  which  they  who  fought  here,  have 
thus  far  so  nobly  advanced.  It  is  rather  for  us  to  be  here 
dedicated  to  the  great  task  remaining  before  us;  that  from 
these  honored  dead  we  take  increased  devotion  to  that  cause 
for  which  they  gave  the  last  full  measure  of  devotion;  that 
we  here  highly  resolve  that  these  dead  shall  not  have  died  in 
vain;  that  this  nation  under  God  shall  have  a  new  birth  of 
freedom,  and  that  government  of  the  people,  by  the  people 
and  for  the  people  shall  not  perish  from  the  earth." 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremonies  Mr.  Everett 
grasped  the  hand  of  Lincoln  and  said  ''I  congratulate  you 
on  your  success",  and  then  added  with  emphasis,  "Mr. 
President,  I  would  gladly  give  my  one  hundred  pages  to  be 
the  author  of  your  twenty  lines." 

The  next  day  after  the  dedication,  he  wrote  the  Presi- 
dent as  follows  :  "Permit  me  to  express  my  great  admiration 
of  the  thought  expressed  by  you  with  such  eloquent  simpli- 
city and  appropriateness  at  the  consecration  of  the  Cem- 
etery.   I  should  be  glad  if  I  could  flatter  myself  that  I  came 

118 


so  near  the  central  idea  of  the  occasion  in  two  hours,  as  you 
did  in  two  minutes." 

Yet  all  lovers  of  good  literature  should  read  and  study 
the  Everett  oration.  In  it  are  gems  of  elegant  thought, 
rhetorical  beauty  and  expressions  of  true  patriotism. 

Before  the  opening  of  hostilities  in  the  Civil  War,  far- 
seeing  statesmen  of  the  South  regarded  as  a  mistake  that 
the  wisdom  of  Lincoln  had  not  been  more  fully  appreciated 
by  her  people,  at  a  period  when  his  timely  advice  and  warn- 
ing should  have  been  heeded  by  the  secession  element.  Yet 
the  course  pursued  by  the  Southern  States  brought  about  a 
more  speedy  destruction  of  slavery,  which  had  been  from 
the  foundation  of  our  Colonial  government  the  blighting 
curse  of  the  American  people.  Let  us  rejoice  that  the 
world  has  been  made  better  by  reason  of  the  influence  re- 
flected from  the  exemplary  life  and  teachings  of  the  Great 
Emancipator. 


Remarks,  by  Miss  Lottie  Jones.  Chairman,  Executive 
Committee  L.  C.  M.  A.. 

Miss  Jones  spoke  pleasingly  and  encouragingly  of 
the  good  work  that  is  being  accomplished  by  the  D.  A.  R. 
and  the  L.  C.  M.  A.  organizations.  She  referred  to  the 
different  places  where  the  Lincoln  memorial  markers  have 
been  and  are  to  be  placed.  She  complimented  the  officers 
engaged  in  the  work  and  spoke  feelingly  of  her  high  appre- 
ciation of  the  success  of  the  occasion. 


A  splendid  eulogistic  address  was  made  by  J.  Bernard 
Murphy  as  follows  : — 

Fellow  Citizens  and  Friends : 

Todav    we    are    assembled    to    review    the    life    of 


119 


Abraham  Lincoln;  to  pay  solemn  tribute  to  his  im- 
mortal name  and  to  unveil  a  tablet  perpetuating  his 
memory  and  the  glories  of  his  achievements.  If  affords 
me  much  happiness  to  have  the  privilege  of  participating  in 
these  ceremonies  and  to  have  the  honor  of  being  here  as  a 
representative  of  the  American  Legion. 

The  men  who  fought  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes  dur- 
ing the  recent  World  War  were  inspired  to  victory  by  the 
deeds  of  their  forefathers  recorded  in  the  history  of  the  Re- 
public. Their  determination  to  conquer  was  animated  by 
the  courage,  the  unwavering  conviction  and  the  deep  sin- 
cerity of  such  patriots  as  Abraham  Lincoln.  Their  brav- 
ery finds  its  counterpart  in  the  valor  displayed  on  American 
battlefields  in  every  war  in  which  the  nation  has  ever  been 
engaged.  Their  loyalty  to  the  cause  which  they  repre- 
sented and  their  devotion  to  the  institutions  which  were  es- 
tablished by  the  framers  of  our  constitution  and  preserved 
by  succeeding  generations  are  re-affirmed  in  the  purposes 
of  the  American  Legion. 

Though  the  war  has  been  over  for  more  than  four 
years  and  the  nation  has  gradually  turned  to  the  pursuits  of 
peace,  the  spirit  of  service  still  prevails.  Men  and  women 
who  responded  to  the  Country's  call  in  the  years  1917  and 
1918  have  banded  themselves  together  in  order  that  they 
may  be  better  able,  in  time  of  peace,  to  continue  their  mis- 
sion of  Service  and  to  be  a  power  for  constructive  good. 
The  founders  of  the  American  Legion  are  men  who  believe, 
as  Lincoln  believed,  in  Union  and  in  Liberty,  in  Right  and 
Equality,  in  God  and  in  their  Country. 

Their  purpose  was  to  construct  an  organization  ded- 
icated to  the  ideals  that  have  made  America  the  haven  of 

120 


refuge  for  the  oppressed  and  the  temporal  savior  of  hu- 
manity. An  organization  ordained  to  serve  America  by 
upholding  and  defending  the  constitution  of  the  United 
States;  by  assisting  to  Americanize  and  assimilate  the  immi- 
grants who  come  to  our  shores;  by  inculcating  a  sense  of 
individual  obligation  to  the  community,  state  and  nation; 
by  fostering  true  democracy;  by  striving  to  make  right  the 
Master  of  Might  and  to  promote  peace  and  good  will  on 
earth.  The  fundamentals  of  the  American  Legion  are  not 
the  fruits  of  new-born  thoughts  but  are  basic  American 
principles  which  originated  in  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence and  which  have  stood  the  test  of  time  and  strife. 

As  we  turn  aside  for  the  moment  from  our  daily  busi- 
ness cares  and  devote  a  little  time  to  matters  of  public  con- 
cern, and  particularly  to  the  life  of  a  great  statesman  and 
servant  of  the  people,  we  are  impressed  how  incomplete 
their  national  life  would  have  been  without  such  patriotic 
organizations  as  the  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution 
and  The  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  They  have  stood 
before  the  eyes  of  rising  generations  as  living  examples  of 
true  American  citizenship.  They  have  taught  us  the  les- 
sons of  service  and  of  sacrifice.  They  have  typified  the 
ideals  of  Washington  and  Lincoln.  And  now  the  Amer- 
ican Legion,  is  here  to  carry  on  the  work  which  they  began 
and  which  they  have  so  nobly  done.  Our  generation  ac- 
cepts the  duty  and  honor  of  giving  to  the  world  unsullied 
and  unchanged,  the  ideal  of  right,  of  freedom,  of  liberty  un- 
der law. 

As  the  years  roll  on  and  the  march  of  progress  con- 
tinues, with  our  rapid  commercial  and  industrial  develop- 
ment, our  complicated  international  relations  and  foreign 
intrigue,  we  are  continually  being  confronted  with  innumer- 

121 


able  new  problems  which  present  themselves  for  solution. 

Many  of  these  are  highly  socialistic  and  revolutionary 
in  character  and  strike  at  the  very  vitals  of  America.  In 
order  to  safeguard  our  liberties  and  to  preserve  the  bless- 
ings which  have  been  handed  down  to  us  as  a  priceless  heri- 
tage from  preceding  generations,  it  is  necessary  for  us  to 
keep  faith  with  the  ideals  of  our  forefathers,  for  which 
they  struggled  and  died ;  to  keep  faith  with  the  traditions 
that  are  found  only  in  American  history  and  that  are  con- 
secrated in  blood  sacrificed  in  freedom's  holy  name;  to 
keep  faith  with  ourselves,  our  neighbors  and  our  posterity. 
In  a  Democracy,  where  faith  is  dead  there  hope  is  lost. 
Without  faith  there  can  be  no  Government  by  the  people, 
of  the  people  and  for  the  people;  without  faith  in  our  fel- 
low men  and  in  tomorrow  there  can  be  no  economic  devel- 
opment, no  industrial  prosperity  and  no  national  security. 
There  are  some  within  our  borders  who  would  break  the 
faith  and  see  our  natoin1  drift  onto  the  rocks  of  destruction. 
There  are  those  shortsighted  individuals  who  live  only  in 
the  present;  who  declare  that  our  civilization  is  crumbling 
and  that  the  progress  of  today  will  be  followed  by  disaster 
and  calamity  tomorrow.  Then  there  are  others  who  for 
their  own  self  aggrandizement  roam  back  and  forth  across 
our  land  preaching  false  doctrines  calculated  to  encourage 
sedition,  to  agitate  industrial  strife,  to  foster  race  prejudice, 
to  stir  up  religious  hatred  and  to  establish  widespread  dis- 
respect for  law  and  order.  Such  disturbing  influences  are 
un-American  and  have  no  proper  place  within  the  domin- 
ions of  our  Country.  Happily  the  promoters  of  these  de- 
structive elements  are  greatly  in  the  minority  and  their  la- 
bors will  remain  unavailing  so  long  as  the  love  of  freedom, 
of  justice  and  equality  is  nourished  in  American  hearts. 

122 


Fortunately,  the  great  mass  of  our  people  are  men  and 
women  who  cherish  the  sanctity  of  the  home  and  family; 
who  have  confidence  in  the  institutions  which  have  made 
our  liberties,  our  civilization  and  progress  possible.  Men 
and  women  who  believe  in  the  stability  of  America;  who 
have  an  abiding  faith  in  posterity  and  in  the  nation's  future. 

To  me  it  seems  that  one  of  the  most  solemn  duties  of 
citizenship  devolving  upon  us  is  to  teach  to  our  children 
and  to  our  immigrant  population  a  deeper  respect  for  law 
and  constituted  authority.  Today  there  is  too  much  vio- 
lation of  the  law;  too  much  mob  rule;  too  many  murders 
and  other  offences  are  being  committed  for  paltry  gold  and 
selfish  gain;  too  many  men  charged  with  crime,  real  or 
imaginary,  have  been  mistreated,  punished  or  even  slain  by 
outlaw  bands,  without  the  interposition  of  judge  or  jury 
and  without  the  sanction  of  legal  authority.  This  sort  of 
thing  constitutes  a  lurking  danger  which  strikes  at  the 
foundation  of  the  Republic  and  which  must  be  dealt  with  by 
appropriate  means.  It  must  be  met  by  a  revival  of  patriot- 
ism, by  a  renewed  and  more  intensive  educational  training 
aryJ  by  more  fearless  administration  of  the  criminal  law. 
The  task  is  not  an  easy  one,  but  it  will  be  done,  because 
American  determination  for  equity  and  justice  has  willed 
it  so. 

The  life  of  Abraham  Lincoln  constitutes  a  noble  and 
wholesome  example  of  patriotic  devotion  and  can  be  used  as 
a  powerful  influence  in  thei  educational  phase  of  this  work, 
because  it  inspires  truer  citizenship  and  actuates  more 
zealous  service  for  democracy  and  freedom  under  law.  The 
name  of  Lincoln  will  always  stand  as  a  bulwark  for  the 
preservation  of  these  ideals.  We  shall  always  cherish  his 
memory.       In  his  language :  "The  mystic  chords  of  mem- 

123 


ory,  stretching  from  -every  battlefield  and  patriot  grave  to 
every  living  heart  and  hearth-stone  all  over  this  broad  land, 
will  yet  swell  the  chorus  of  the  Union  when  again  touched, 
as  surely  they  will  be,  by  the  better  angels  of  our  nature." 


Here  orders  were  given  to  repair  to  monument. 

The  monument  was  gracefully  unveiled  by  Mrs. 
Charles  Herrick  and  Mrs.  F.  W.  Wilcox  of  the  D.  A.  R. 

Presentation  of  marker  to  McLean  County  by  Letitia 
Green  Stevenson  Chapter  D.  A.  R.  and  L.  C.  M.  A.,  by 
Mrs.  S.  E.  Sims,  Past  State  Regent. 

Mr.  Graves,  Hon.  Acting  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  McLean  County. 

I  deem  it  an  honor  as  well  as  a  great  privilege  on 
behalf  of  the  Lititia  Green  Stevenson  Chapter  D.  A.  R. 
and  the  Lincoln  Circuit  Marking  Ass'n.,  to  present  this 
beautiful  Memorial  Marker  to  the  care  and  keeping  of 
the  County. 

It  marks  the  highway  over  which  Abraham  Lincoln 
passed  from  Woodford  into  McLean  County,  when  he 
rode  the  Circuit  of  the  Eighth  Judicial  District,  when  prac- 
ticing law  in  the  Courts  of  Central  Illinois. 

It  is  erected  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  the  influ- 
ence of  Abraham  Lincoln  alive,  and  perpetuating  his 
memory,  not  only  for  this  generation  but  for  generations 
yet  to  come. 

I;  present  it,  Hon.  Chairman,  with  the  hope  that  we 
may  so  live  that  it  may  be  said  of  us,  as  it  is  said  of  our 
beloved  Lincoln,  We  traveled  this  way. 

124 


Presentation  of  marker  to  Woodford  County  by  Mr. 
L.  J.  Freese,  Director,  L.  C.  M.  A. 

Madame  President  and  Mr.  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  Woodford  county: 

The  committee  of  the  Lincoln  Circuit  Marking  As- 
sociation for  Woodford  county  has  performed  its  task 
of  tracing  the  public  highway  over  which  Lincoln  trav- 
eled, entering  Woodford  county  from  Tazewell  county 
about  three  miles  north  of  Washington  it  follows  the  an- 
gling road  into  Metamora,  the  former  county  seat,  thence 
southeasterly  through  old  Versailles,  the  first  county  seat, 
and  Bowling  Green  both  now  off  the  map,  and  thence 
across  the  Mackinaw  at  Wyatt's  Ford  at  the  foot  of  yonder 
slope,  and  up  the  road  and  across  these  fields  into  McLean 
county. 

Lincoln  traveled  this  trail  with  other  attorneys  and 
the  Circuit  Judge  of  the  Eighth  Judicial  District.  To  mark 
the  place  where  the  trail  leaves  Woodford  county  and  en- 
ters McLean  county  this  beautiful  marker  has  been  placed 
by  the  committee,  jointly  with  the  committee  from  Mc- 
Lean county.     This  completes  the  work  of  our  committee. 

Now,  Mr.  Chairman  of  the  Woodford  county  Board 
of  Supervisors  I  present  to  you  the  Woodford  county  half 
of  this  marker  for  your  care  and  keeping  as  the  years 
go  by.  I  am  sure  it  will  be  looked  after  by  you  with  as 
much  interest  and  devotion  as  this  attentive  audience 
manifests   in  the  dedicatory  exercises  today. 

This  marker  as  the  generations  come  and  go  will 
say  to  those  who  pass  by  that  a  great  man  traveled  this 
way  in  his  vocation  as  a  lawyer;  Lincoln,  the  rail  splitter; 
Lincoln,  the  surveyor;  Lincoln,  the  congressman;  Lin- 
coln, the  President ;  our  martyred  President ;  the  immortal 

125 


Lincoln  who  lives  in  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  whose 
name  will  forever  shine  in  the  constellation  with  that  of 
Washington,  Grant  and  Logan;  Blaine  and  Theodore 
Roosevelt. 

Both  of  these  talks  were  very  beautiful  and  highly 
appreciated. 

The  acceptance  of  the  care  and  keeping  of  monument 
C.  E.  Graves,  Acting  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
of  McLean  County,  and  Joseph  Welte,  Chairman  of  the 
Board  of  Supervisors  of  Woodford  County. 

The  remarks  of  acceptance  by  these  gentlemen  were 
very  appropriate  and  well  chosen. 


126 


